Musical Terms and Expressions Name: ______Dynamics 1. pp: play at a volume of pianissimo (very soft) 2. p: play at a volume of piano (soft) 3. mp: play at a volume of mezzo piano (medium soft) 4. mf: play at a volume of mezzo forte (medium loud) 5. f: play at a volume of forte (loud) sf play sforzando (loud with a strong accent) 6. ff: play at a volume of fortissimo (very loud) 7. sf: play sforzando (very loud with a strong accent) 8. cresc.: abbreviation of the word crescendo (gradually get louder)
Tempo and Rhythm (tempo=speed at which the piece is played) 1. Adagio: slow tempo 2. Andante: walking tempo (somewhat slow but faster than adagio) 3. Andantino: tempo faster than andante 4. Moderato: medium tempo 5. Allegretto: moderately fast tempo 6. Allegro: fast tempo 7. Spiritoso: spirited or lively tempo 8. ritard: gradually slow down 9. rallentando: play more and more slowly 10. a tempo: return to the original tempo of the piece
Expression and Technique 1. cantabile: play in a singing or flowing style 2. doloroso: play in a sorrowful or lamenting style 3. dramatico: play in a dramatic style with a striking and exaggerated show of emotion 4. e: this letter is an Italian word meaning and 5. fluido: play in a flowing and smooth style 6. gioioso: play in a joyous and cheerful style 7. giulivo: play in a merry, festive and joyful style 8. grazioso: play in a graceful and elegant style 9. legato: play smoothly and connected 10. leggiero: play lightly 11. marziale: play in a martial, march-like and/or military style 12. misterioso: play with a mysterious or secretive character 13. nostalgia: a longing for days gone by 14. sentimentale: play with emotion resulting from feeling rather than thinking 15. sempre: Italian word meaning always; it can be used with any musical term (e.g. staccato sempre--meaning to play staccato all the time) 16. staccato: this word means the same as a dot placed over or under a note; let go of the note quickly as you play it detached or separated from the next note 17. tranquillo: play in a quiet, peaceful, and calm style
Musical Terms and Expressions Name: ______
Need-to know information: The following page lists various terms that are used to tell a musician or performer how a song or piece of music should be played. Terms of expression are generally universal in music--meaning most musicians recognize these terms. The terms are most often seen in the Italian language. This is because terms of expression became regularly used for the first time during two distinct periods of musical history: the Renaissance Period and the Baroque Period. Many of the earliest prominent composers were from Italy, so these Italian terms became quite standard in musical notation. Even composers who spoke languages other than Italian often used these terms for consistency.
Materials you need: -this page -a few sheets of notebook paper -a writing utensil -colored pencils or crayons (step 2 only)
Directions: Step 1: ---On your own sheet of paper, write each term followed by an action/event that matches the definition of the word. (For example: adagio-getting out of bed, ff/fortissimo-an NFL game). Do this for every single one of the terms! Be creative with these answers.
Step 2: ---Choose 3 terms from the list and draw a picture of whatever action/event you used for those words. (For example: if you said “getting out of bed” for adagio, doodle that scene and write “adagio” underneath the picture.) Feel free to draw something abstract if it makes more sense for your chosen word.
Step 3: ---Write a short story using at least 10 different terms as adjectives (describing words). (For example, you may start your story in a structure similar to the following sentence: “One pianissimo morning in a faraway land, Princess Amelia crawled from bed, legato as usual.”) ---Highlight or circle these words with a different color so they stand out!