Acoustics - Airs à boire
A - the orchestral tuning tone of A above middle C recommended in 1936 by The American Standards Association standardized by The International Organization for Standardization in 1955; tone with a pitch frequency of 440 hz
Ab - (German) "off"; command to cease using a mute or organ stop
Abafando - (Portuguese) "muffled"; muted
Abandonné - (French) "abandoned"; to play freely
Abbandonatamente - (Italian) "freely"; free; play in a relaxing manner
A battuta - (Italian) "to the beat"; return to the normal tempo or beat
Aber - (German) "but"; except as; with a difference
A battuta - (Italian) "to the beat"; return to the normal tempo or beat
Abbassare - (Italian) "to lower"; the act of tuning a stringed instrument to a lower pitch for playing outside of its normal range
Abbellimenti - (Italian) "embellishment"; to embellish; add musical expression to the written part
A bene placito - (Italian) "at pleasure"; up to the performer; as you please
Abridged - to shorten rather than complete; to tie the theme of a composition to a movement or musical phrase, normally refers to a sonata's inclusion into a larger orchestral composition
Absolute Music - abstract music; music written for its own sake with no direct reference to anything outside itself; music that is non-representational
Absolute Pitch - perfect pitch; a person's ability to determine or sing a note's pitch with no prior sounding of that pitch
Abstract Music - absolute music; music written for its own sake with no direct reference to anything outside itself; music that is non-representational
A cappella - (Italian) "in the style of the chapel"; vocal music; music with no instrumental accompaniment
A cappriccio - (Italian, French) "capricious,"; a free, unpredictable, or impulsive approach to the tempo
Accarezzevole - (Italian) "caressing"; play in a caressing manner; expressive
Accelerando - (Italian) "faster"; to gradually increase the speed or tempo
Accelerāta - (Latin) "faster"; with an increased speed or tempo
Accelerato - (Italian) "faster"; to gradually increase the speed or tempo
Accentato - (Italian) "accent" to emphasize a tone above adjacent tones
Accent - to emphasize a tone above the other tones around it; musical notation instructing to 'accent' a note over others
Accentus - (Latin) "stress"; a type of church music emphasizing spoken word; a French chamber choir founded by Laurence Equilbey in 1991
Accesso - (Italian) "attack"; an attack; fire; ignition; fit
Accessible - music that is easy to listen to; music that is pleasant to the ear
Acciaccato - (Italian) "crushed"; a break; play the tones of a chord not quite in unison but barely separated
Acciaccatura - (Italian) "to crush"; squeezed in; grace notes played prior to the written note; see grace notes
Accidental - musical notation instructing to lower or raise a note's pitch; to flatten or sharpen a note
Acclamation - sung or chanted expression of praise often religious in nature such as 'Amen' or 'Hallelujah'
Accompagnato - (Italian) "accompanied"; a musical accompaniment to a singer of a recitative; short term for recitativo accompagnato
Accompany - to join; to be a part of; to occur simultaneously; to support
Accord - in unison; in rhythm or in harmony with one another
Accordatura - (Italian) "in accord"; to tune a musical instrument, usually refers to stringed instruments
Accuratezza - (Italian) "precision"; accurate
Acoustic - (Greek) "to hear"; audible sound; sounds produced by mechanical means, not electrical
Acoustics - the study of the distribution of sound; the natural sound reverberation of an area or enclosure
Action - the level of ease or difficulty to play an instrument such as plucking the keys or strings of an instrument
Act Tune - music played between the acts of a play or opera in 17th and 18th century English theatre; intermezzo; entr'acte
Actus Musicus - (Latin) "musical action"; a semi-dramatic 17th and 18th century German Protestant vocal composition based on a biblical theme
Adagietto - (Italian) "little adagio"; to play slowly but slightly faster than adagio
Adagio - (Italian) "at ease"; play slowly; notation instructing to play slowly
Adagissimo - (Italian) "very slow"; play very slowly; as slow as possible
Additional - music composed to add to an existing composition, usually to update or alter the original composition into acceptance by a different audience
Addolorato - (Italian) "painful"; to play in a sad manner; instructs to play sadly
A Deux - (French) "in two"; instructs two performers to play in unison or separately; an action between two performers
Ad Libitum - (Latin) "at liberty"; play freely; instructs to play or not to play at will
Adoración - (Spanish) "worship"; adore; worship rendered to a God
A due - (French) "a two"; written for a duet; for two voices or instruments playing simultaneously
Aeolian - (Greek) "aeolus"; the Greek God of wind; an instrument, normally stringed, placed in the wind so that it blows the strings to produce tones
Aeolian Mode (Greek) ancient diatonic scaling method which forms the natural minor scale; relative scale to which all other minor scales are referenced
Aerophone - group of musical instruments using wind to produce sound through the vibration of blown air such as wind instruments
Affekt (German) "fervour"; intense; with passion; term used during the Baroque Period to describe the expression of a composition
Affetto (Italian) "with affect"; with emotion; attempt to 'affect' the listener
Affettuoso - (Italian) "affectionate"; instructs to play tenderly or with affection
Affrettando (Italian) "hurrying"; instructs to play hastily; excitedly; play faster
Agile - (Italian) "swift"; play in a swift or agitated manner
Agitato - (Italian) "agitated"; restless; instructs to play in an agitated manner
Angus dei - (Latin) "Lamb of God"; musical piece from the Roman Catholic church Mass, traditionally sung during the breaking of the bread.
Agogic - act of extending a note for emphasis; to lengthen a note;
Agrément - (French) "agree"; embellish or ornament; mutual understanding
Air 1 - musical form of a simple vocal or instrumental melody often based on folk music or ballads; also called "aria" (Italian) when used as part of an opera
Air 2 - to put on a show; to broadcast; make known; to promote publicly
Air 3 - the publicly owned electronic mass communication medium of radio and television transmission; a frequency for broadcast transmitting; airways
Airs à boire - (French) "drinking song"; songs popular during the 17th & 18th centuries used in celebration or promoting social concerns; chansons pour boire
Airways - the publicly owned electronic mass communication medium of radio and television transmission; a frequency for broadcast transmitting; air
