| A | B |
|---|
| Accelerando | Gradually faster |
| accent | play tne note louder, with a special emphasis |
| accidental | a flat, sharp or natural sign that appears within a piece of music |
| adagio | slow |
| allegro | quickly, cheerfully |
| andante | moving along (walking speed) |
| articulation | the manner in which a note is performed |
| bar line | the lines which cross the staff and divide it into measures or bars |
| bass | the clef used for notes in the lower pitch ranges |
| bass staff | the staff on which the bass clef is placed. |
| clef | a sign that helps organize the staff so notes can be easily read |
| coda | an added ending |
| count-off | the introduction given before a piece of music is performed to indicate the tempo of the beat |
| crescendo | gradually louder |
| D.C. (Da Capo) | repeat from the beginning |
| D.C. al Coda | repeat from the beginning and play to |
| D.C. al Fine | Repeat from the beginning and play to the end |
| Decrescendo | gradually softer |
| diminuendo | gradually softer |
| Dot after a note | increases the note's duration by half the original value |
| Dotted half note | in 3/4 and 4/4 time signatures, it receives 3 beats |
| Dotted quarter note | in time signatures with 4 as the bottom number, it receives 1 1/2 beats |
| Double bar | is written at the end of a piece of music |
| D.S. (Dal Segno) | Repeat from the sign |
| D.S. al CODA | Repeat from the sign |
| D.S. al Fine | repeat from the sign and play to the end |
| Dynamic signs | indicate the volume, or how soft or loud the music should be played |
| Eighth note | in time signatures with 4 as the bottom number, it receives 1/2 beat |
| eighth rest | in time signatures with 4 as the bottom number, it receives 1/2 beat of silence |
| Enharmonic notes | Two notes that sound the same but are written differently |
| Fermata | Hold the note for longer than its normal value |
| Fine | The end |
| 1st and 2nd endings | Play or sing through the 1st ending to the repeat sign, then go back to the beginning. When repeating, skip the 1st ending an dplay the 2nd. |
| Flat | Lowers the pitch by one half step |
| Forte | Loud |
| Fortissimo | very loud |
| Grand staff | the bass staff and treble staff connected by a brace and a line |
| Half note | in time signatures with 4 as the bottom number, it receives 2 beats |
| Half rest | in time signatures with 4 as the bottom number, it receives 2 beats of silence |
| Half step | the distance from any key on the keyboard to the very next key above or below, whether black or white |
| largo | very slow |
| ledger line | short lines which are added to extend the range of the staff when the notes are too low or too high to be written on the staff |
| legato | to play or sing 2 or more notes smoothly connected |
| measure (or bar) | the area between two bar lines |
| mezzo | moderately |
| mezzo forte | moderately loud |
| mezzo piano | moderately soft |
| middle C | the note in the middle of the grand staff and the C nearest the middle of the keyboard |
| moderato | moderately |
| natural sign | the natural sign before a note cancels a previous flat or sharp |
| notes | the oval-shaped sybols that are placed on the lines and in the spaces of the staff. They represent musical sounds called pitches |
| pianissimo | very soft |
| piano | soft |
| pitch | a musical sound |
| quarter note | in time signatures with 4 as the bottoom number, it receives 1 beat |
| quarter rest | in time signatures with 4 as the bottom number, it receives 1 beat of silence |
| repeat sign | return to the beginning or previous repeat sign |
| ritardando | gradually slower |
| sforzando | a sudden, strong accent |
| sharp | raises the pitch by one half step |
| slur | smoothly connects two or more notes of different pitches by a curved line over or under the notes |
| staccato | play the note short and detached |
| staff | the five lines and the four spaces between them on which music notes and other symbols are written |
| tempo | a word meaning "rate of speed". It tells how fast or slow to play the music |
| tenuto | hold the note for its full value |
| tie | two notes of the same pitch joined by a curved line over or under the note. |
| time signature | appears at the beginning of the music after the clef sign. |
| treble clef | the clef used for notes in the higher pitch ranges |
| treble staff | the staff on which the treble clef is placed. |
| vivaco | lively and fast |
| whole note | in time signatures with 4 as the bottom number, it receives 4 beats |
| whole rest | means to rest for a whole measure. |
| whole step | the distance from any key on the keyboard to two keys above or below |
