Term | Definition |
A&R | Artist and Repertoire; music industry term for a talent scout. |
a tempo | tempo marking meaning "back to the original tempo." |
accidentals | Sharps, flats and naturals used in written music. |
action | How high off the fretboard the strings are.
Example: "My action is too high." |
adagio | Tempo marking for "medium-slow;" from 66 to 77 bpm. |
Aeolian mode | The 6th mode of the major scale; often called the Natural Minor scale.
The Aeolian mode of the C Major scale is A B C D E F G A. |
allegro | Tempo marking for "fast," from 120 to 168 bpm. |
andante | Tempo marking for 'medium'; from 76 to 108 bpm. |
arco | a notation marking indicating to use a bow (for the double bass). |
arpeggio | the notes of a chord played one after another instead of all at once. |
articulation | The way in which something is played. (i.e. hammer-on, slide, etc.) |
artificial harmonic | A harmonic played on a fretted string. |
atonal | Lacking a tonal center or key. |
attack | The beginning of a note. |
augment | To raise a major or perfect interval by a half-step. |
augmented | Made bigger. Often meaning to raise, or sharp, the fifth of a chord. Specifically, raising a Major or Perfect interval by a half-step. |
backbeat | Beats 2 and 4. |
breve | British-English name for a double whole note. |
cadence | The ending of a piece or section of music. |
changes | Specifically in music, refers to chord changes. |
chart | Written music containing the melody and chords to a song. |
chromatic | From one note to the very next (in half-steps); notes outside the key. |
coda | The end section of a piece of music; in written music, a section to which you jump when the markings instruct you to do so. |
Common time | 4/4 |
comp | To accompany, or compliment, a soloist. |
compound meter | A time signature divisible by 3 (i.e. 6/8 or 12/8). |
compression | An effect which "compresses" the dynamic range (how loud or how quiet something is) of a sound. |
consonance | Sounds combining in a pleasing way. (The opposite of dissonance.) |
counterpoint | Playing two or more melodic lines at the same time. |
crescendo | Increasingly getting louder. |
crotchet | British-English/Classical term for a quarter note. |
Cut time | 2/2 |
da capo | In written music: return to the beginning and play again. Often abbreviated as D.C. |
dal segno | In written music: return to the indicated sign and play. |
decay | The end of a note. |
decrescendo | Increasingly getting quieter. |
degree | Numbers used in identifying the notes of a scale. |
DI | Direct Injection: plugging straight into the mixing board rather than using microphones. |
diatonic | Within a key. |
diminish | To lower a minor or perfect interval by a half-step. |
diminished | To make smaller. Often meaning to flat, or lower, the fifth of a chord. Specifically, lowering a Minor or Perfect interval by a half-step. |
Dorian mode | The second mode of the major scale. The Dorian mode of the C Major scale is D E F G A B C D. |
Double stop | Playing two strings together at the same time. |
double-time | Doubling the tempo without doubling the harmonic rhythm. |
downbeat | The first beat of the measure. |
drag | To slow the music's tempo unintentionally. |
dry | Without added audio effects such as reverb. |
eleventh | A musical interval with a distance of an octave plus a fourth.
Example: From the note C to an F above C an octave higher. A distance of 17 half-steps. |
enharmonic | Pitches that can be spelled more than one way. Ex: C♯ and D♭ are the same pitch. |
etude | A musical study; a composition created specifically for learning technique on an instrument or learning another musical concept. |
extensions | Notes of a chord whose intervals span beyond an octave. i.e. 9ths, 11ths, and 13ths. |
fermata | A musical notation (a dot with an arc over it) instructing to pause longer than the written rhythm. The length of the pause is interpreted by the performer or conductor. |
fifth | A musical interval spanning 7 half-steps. i.e. from C to G. |
fill | A musical phrase, often improvised, filling an empty stretch of music. Fills often create tension leading to another part or beginning a repeated section. |
filter | An electronic effect which only affects particular frequencies of the input signal. |
flat | An accidental indicating to play a note a half-step lower. |
sharp | An accidental indicating to play a note a half-step higher. |
forzando | Abbreviated fz; a musical marking indicating to strongly accent. |
fours | Four bar sections; often used in jazz meaning to trade four-bar solo sections. |
Free time | Playing without a definite musical pulse of meter. |
fret | Metal wires inserted into the fingerboard which accurately divide up the pitches along the length of the neck of a stringed instrument. |
ghost note | A note of indeterminate pitch notated with an X in place of a notehead. On bass, plucking a muted string creates this common percussive effect. |
glissando | Abbreviated gliss.; musical term meaning to slide from one note to another. |
grace note | An articulation or ornament, such as a slide or hammer-on, leading into a note. Notated by a small note with a slash through it preceding the target note. |
half-cadence | A cadence which finishes on a dominant, or V, chord. |
half-diminished | A type of 7th chord built with a root, topped with a minor 3rd, a diminished 5th and a minor 7th. Also called a minor 7th flat 5 chord. |
harmonic | Bell-like tone produced by a string vibrating in several segments rather than its entire length. Produced by lightly touching (not pressing) a string at a node with one finger and plucking that string. Notable nodes: above the 12th, 7th and 5th frets. |
harmonic analysis | the analysis of chord relationships in a piece of music. For example, numbering chords based on their position within the key--the I, IV and V in the key of C are C, F and G. |
harmonic rhythm | The rhythm of the chord progression. Another term for 'changes.' |
harmony | The study of the combining of notes both at the same time (chords), as well as over the course of time (chord progressions). |
heptatonic | A seven-tone scale, such as the Major scale. |
horizontal | Related to scales as opposed to chords. Since scales are a series of notes rather than a stack of notes like a chord, "playing horizontally" means to play off of the notes of a scale. |
in the pocket | Locked in the groove. |
interval | The musical "distance" between a pair of notes. Often described by the number of half-steps that separate two notes (Ex: a minor 3rd interval = 2 notes 3 half-steps apart). Intervals = building blocks of scales, chords, and larger note patterns. |
intonation | How in tune an instrument or musician plays. |
Ionian mode | The first mode of the Major scale, and identical to the Major scale. The Ionian mode of the C Major scale is C D E F G A B C. |
key | The major or minor scale around which a song, or piece of music, revolves. |
key change | Shifting from one tonal center, or key, to another. |
larghetto | A tempo marking meaning "slow;" from 60 to 66 bpm. |
largo | Tempo marking for "very slow;" from 40 to 60 bpm. |
lead sheet | Sometimes called a "chart." A page of music outlining only the melody and chords to a piece of music. Instrumentalists expected to improvise their parts based on chords and melody. |
leading tone | The 7th note of the major, harmonic minor and melodic minor scales. |
ledger lines | In music notation, horizontal lines written above and below the staff used to extend the range of the staff. |
legato | Playing notes with no, or very little, silence between them. |
Locrian mode | The seventh mode of the Major scale. The Locrian mode of the CM scale is B C D E F G A B. |
lower | To flat a note; move a note a half-step lower. |
luthier | A person who builds guitars, basses and similar instruments. |
Lydian mode | The fourth mode of the Major scale. The Lydian mode of the CM scale is F G A B C D E F. |
machine head | Also called "tuners." The part of the bass consisting of the tuning key, gears and string post used to adjust the tension of the string. |
microtonal | Using intervals smaller than a half-step. Ex: quarter tones. |
middle 8 | A bridge section; traditionally bridges were 8 bars long occurring in the middle of a song. |
middle C | The note one ledger line above the bass clef staff, and one ledger line below the treble clef staff; the C note in the middle of the piano keyboard. (Due to the octave transposition of the bass in written music, it is actually an octave above this C.) |
minim | British-English name for a half note. |
Mixolydian mode | The fifth mode of the Major scale. The Mixolydian mode of the CM scale is G A B C D E F G. |
modal | Related to modes; used to describe music centered around the notes of a particular mode. Opposite of tonal (music centered around notes of a Major or minor key.) |
moderato | Tempo marking for "medium fast;" from 108 to 120 bpm. |
modes | Scales within scales. Scales derived by starting and ending on different notes of a particular scale. Ex: CM is C D E F G A B C. 2nd mode of CM is D E F G A B C D. |
ninth | A musical interval spanning an octave plus a second. Ex: From C to a D above the next higher C. |
node | A point on a string, usually in regards to harmonics, which remains still rather than vibrating. |
octatonic | An eight-tone scale, such as the diminished scale. |
octave | A musical interval spanning 12 half-steps. |
open position | Fretting hand position using open strings while the first finger plays notes on the 1st fret, second finger on the 2nd fret, etc. |
open string | A string which is not fretted. |
ostinato pattern | A short, repeated musical pattern played throughout a song or part of a song. |
parallel key | A key sharing the same root note. Ex: AM and Am. |
passing tone | A note used to connect (stepwise) between two other notes. Ex: C♯ could be used as a passing tone between C and D. |
pedal point | playing the same bass note beneath a series of chords. Ex: Dm/G, F/G, C/G. Term comes from bass pedals used by organ players. |
pentatonic | A five-tone scale. |
performance markings | Markings in written music indicating how something is to be executed by the performer. For example, dynamic markings (like mf) and playing techniques (like pizzicato). |
Phrygian mode | The third mode of the Major scale. The Phrygian mode of the CM scale is E F G A B C D E. |
pickup measure | A measure of incomplete length at the beginning of a piece of music used as a lead-in to the song. |
pivot chord | A chord that exists within two different keys and helps create a smooth transition between those keys during a change. Ex: VI chord (Em) in the key of G might function as a II chord (Em) in the key of D. |
playing across the barline | Sustaining a note from one bar into the next. |
position | A fretting hand position usually indicating the location of one's 1st finger. Ex: 3rd position means to position your 1st finger over the 3rd fret. |
prestissimo | A tempo marking for "very fast;" 208 bpm and higher. |
presto | Tempo marking for "very fast;" from 168 to 200 bpm. |
primary chords | The I, IV, and V chords in a Major key. |
quarter note | A note value that is one-fourth the length of a whole note. |
quarter tone | Half of a half-step, or semitone. |
quaver | British English name for an 8th note. |
raise | To move a note a half-step higher. Ex: a raised 5th. |
register | A region of an instrument's total note range often described as upper, lower, middle, high, low, etc. |
reharmonize | To change some or all of the harmonies in a song. |
relative key | A Major and minor key that share the same set of notes. Ex: CM and Am contain the same notes (C D E F G A B and A B C D E F G.) |
relative pitch | The ability to recognize musical intervals by ear when given a reference note. |
rubato | Elastic tempo; playing with fluctuating tempo as an expression of musical feeling (and not because you can't play a steady tempo.) |
run | A fast musical passage. |
rush | To speed up the music's tempo unintentionally. |
semibreve | British-English name for a whole note. |
semiquaver | British English name for a 16th note. |
semitone | Another name for a half-step; the smallest interval in Western music. Ex: from C to C♯ is a semitone. |
sexatonic | A six-tone scale, such as the wholetone scale. |
sharp | An accidental indicating to play a note a half-step higher. |
simple meter | A time signature divisible by 2. Ex: 4/4. |
staccato | n indication to play short notes with silence in between them; compare to legato. Indicated in written music with a dot written directly above, or below, the notehead. |
stepwise | Notes moving by whole-steps and/or half-steps; scalar. |
substitution chord | A chord used in place of another chord often providing the same function of the original chord. |
syncopation | Accenting weak parts of the beat; playing "off-beat." |
tacet | To be silent. Ex: In notation, you might see a marking like "Bass tacet 1st verse." |
tag | A repeated ending for a song usually played 3 times. |
tenth | A musical interval spanning an octave plus a 3rd. Ex: from C to the E above the next higher C. |
timbre | The tonal "color" of a pitch. What gives an instrument its most identifiable qualities. It is why you can tell a piano from a guitar even when they play the same note. |
tonal | Music that revolves around a Major or minor key, as opposed to around a mode. |
tonic | The root note of a key. |
trading fours | Trading 4-bar solo sections between two or more instruments. |
train wreck | When a song falls apart or a musician gets lost during a performance. |
triad | A chord consisting of 3 notes |
tritone | An interval of 3 whole-steps; another name for a diminished 5th interval. |
turnaround | A chord progression, often one or two bars long, that brings the music back to the beginning. |
two-feel | A bassline that mostly stresses a half note pulse on beats 1 and 3. |
unison | A musical interval of zero half-steps; two notes of the very same pitch and octave. |
upbeat | One or more notes preceding the downbeat (first beat of a measure), also called a pickup; the notes between the basic beats. |
vamp | A repeated stretch of accompanying music. |
vertical | Related to chords as opposed to scales. Since chords are vertically-stacked notes, "playing vertically" means to play off of the notes of the chord. |
vibrato | A fretting hand technique that slightly fluctuates a pitch up and down. |
voicing | The ordering of notes in a chord from lowest to highest. |
wah-wah | An electronic filter effect which creates a crying, wah-wah sound. The filter is commonly controlled by a rocking pedal that opens and closes the filter. |
walking bass | Style of bass playing which is characterized by a consistent quarter note rhythm and stepwise notes smoothly connecting the chords of the song. |
waltz | A song in triple meter, such as 3/4. |
wet | Saturated in an audio effect such as reverb. |
whole note | A note value lasting for 4 quarter note beats. |
whole tone scale | A six-note scale made up of only whole-steps. Only two of them exist. |
wholetone | Another name for a whole-step; the musical interval of two half-steps. |
wolf tone | An acoustic phenomenon where a note on an instrument does not sustain as well, or is muted, compared to other notes on the instrument. On bass, this note often occurs on the B, C, or C♯ of the G string. |
32-bar form | A song form with a length of 32 bars, often with an AABA structure, and common among jazz standards. |
8va | Abbreviation of ottava alta; play what is written an octave above. This is done to put notes on the staff instead of on ledger lines. |
8vb | Abbreviation of ottava bassa; an indication to play what is written an octave lower. This is done to put notes on the staff instead of ledger lines. |