Musical Notation: English Vocabulary List

the musical pitch A, which is a specific note in the diatonic scale commonly used in Western music

"A is musical note."

"A is the musical note that is the sixth scale degree of the C major scale."

the 7th note in the C-major scale

"B is musical note."

"B is the musical note that is the seventh scale degree of the C major scale."

the first note in the C-major scale

"C is musical note."

"C is the musical note that is the first scale degree and tonic of the C major scale."

the second note of the C-major scale

"D is musical note."

"D is the musical note that is the second scale degree re of the C major scale."

the third note in the C-major scale

"E is musical note."

"E is the musical note that is the third scale degree mi of the C major scale."

the fourth note in the C-major scale

"F is musical note."

"F is the musical note that is the fourth scale degree fa of the C major scale."

the fifth note in the C-major scale

"G is musical note."

"G is the musical note that is the fifth scale degree so of the C major scale."

a musical note that is held or sustained for the duration of four beats in 4/4 time, typically denoted by an open oval shape

"Whole note lasts four beats."

"A whole note is a musical note that is held for four beats in common time."

a square-shaped notehead with no stem or flags representing a note duration equivalent to four whole notes in Western music

"Double whole note lasts long."

"The composer indicated a sustained, resonant sound by using a double whole note."

the C note situated approximately in the middle of the piano keyboard, often serving as a reference point for pitch

"Middle C is central piano note."

"Middle C is the musical note C located near the center of the piano keyboard and written on the first ledger line below the treble clef."

the interval between the first and the last notes in eight diatonic degrees

"He sang one octave higher."

"The singer's voice jumped an entire octave when she hit the high note at the end of the song."

a musical symbol that indicates the raising of a note by two half steps or two semitones, equivalent to the same note as a natural but two half steps higher

"Double sharp raises pitch whole step."

"A double sharp sign raises the pitch of a note by two half steps or one whole step."

a note symbol that represents a duration equal to half the value of a whole note, typically lasting for two beats in 4/4 time

"Half note lasts two beats."

"A half note is a musical note that is held for two beats half the duration of a whole note."

the smallest interval used in Western music, equal to the distance between two adjacent notes on a keyboard or fretboard

"Half step is smallest interval."

"A half step is the smallest interval used in Western music equal to one twelfth of an octave."

a musical symbol placed over a note or rest to indicate that it should be held longer than its normal duration

"Fermata holds note longer."

"A fermata is a symbol that indicates a note or rest should be held longer than its normal value."

a pair of upright lines in written music marking the end of a composition or a main passage

"Double bar marks end."

"A double bar consists of two vertical lines and marks the end of a section or an entire piece."

a note symbol representing a duration equal to one quarter of the value of a whole note

"Quarter note lasts one beat."

"A quarter note is a musical note that is held for one beat one quarter of a whole note."

a type of fizzy water that can be mixed with other drinks such as gin or vodka

"Tonic is bitter."

"Tonic water contains quinine which was originally used to prevent malaria giving the beverage its distinctive bitter flavor that pairs well with gin."

a short line added above or below the staff to represent a note that is outside the range of the staff

"Ledger line extends staff."

"A ledger line is a short line written above or below the staff for notes outside its range."

an upright line that separates the bars in written music

"Add bar line."

"The musician needs to add a bar line to separate the measures in the music score."

a note duration equivalent to 64 whole notes in Western music

"Maxima is very long note."

"Maxima is a medieval musical note value that is the longest in mensural notation."

a note duration equivalent to 16 whole notes in Western music

"Quadruple note lasts sixteen times."

"A quadruple note is the same as a longa a very long note value in early music notation."

a musical symbol indicating the end of a section or phrase in sheet music

"Dotted bar line separates phrases."

"The dotted bar line in the score suggested a slight pause between musical phrases."

any of the signs written on the left-hand end of a staff indicating the pitch of the notes

"The treble clef is for high notes."

"A clef is a musical symbol placed at the beginning of a staff to indicate the pitch of the written notes"

a musical symbol that indicates the position of the G note on the staff, also known as the treble clef

"G clef indicates treble staff."

"The G clef is a symbol that indicates the pitch of notes on the staff by circling the line for G above middle C."

a musical symbol used to indicate the position of middle C on a staff, and is commonly used for notating the pitches of instruments such as viola, bassoon, and cello

"C clef indicates middle C."

"The C clef is a movable clef that points to the line representing middle C."

a musical symbol that indicates the position of the F note on the staff, also known as the bass clef

"F clef indicates bass staff."

"The F clef is a symbol used for low pitched notes and its two dots surround the line for F below middle C."

a musical symbol used to indicate that the written notes should be played or sung one octave higher or lower than notated

"Octave clef shifts pitch."

"The composer used an octave clef to simplify the notation for the high-pitched instrument."

a type of clef used to notate rhythms without specifying pitch, commonly for percussion instruments

"Neutral clef is for percussion."

"The neutral clef is used for unpitched percussion instruments and does not indicate a specific pitch."

a system of musical notation used for fretted string instruments, representing finger placement on the instrument's strings and frets

"Tablature shows fingerings."

"Guitarists often use tablature to learn songs by showing where to place their fingers."

a musical note symbol representing a duration equal to one eighth of the value of a whole note

"Eighth note has one flag."

"An eighth note is a musical note that is held for half a beat and has a flag attached to its stem."

a musical note symbol representing a duration equal to one sixteenth of the value of a whole note

"Sixteenth note has two flags."

"A sixteenth note is a musical note that is held for one quarter of a beat and has two flags."

a note symbol representing a duration equal to one thirty-second of the value of a whole note

"Thirty-second note has three flags."

"A thirty second note is a musical note that is held for one eighth of a beat and has three flags."

a musical note symbol representing a duration equal to one sixty-fourth of the value of a whole note

"Sixty-fourth note has four flags."

"A sixty fourth note is a musical note held for one sixteenth of a beat with four flags."

a musical notation representing a very short duration of time, typically used in fast-paced music

"Hundred twenty-eighth note has five flags."

"A hundred twenty eighth note is a very short musical note with five flags on its stem."

a musical notation representing an extremely short duration of time, typically used in very fast-paced music

"This note has six flags."

"A two hundred fifty sixth note is an extremely short musical note with six flags."

a musical note with a dot placed to the right of it, which increases its duration by half, indicating that it should be held longer than a regular note of the same value

"Dotted note adds half value."

"A dotted note increases the duration of a note by half of its original value."

a percussive note played with reduced or muted volume, often used in drumming and rhythm guitar to add subtle accents or create a syncopated feel

"Ghost note is very soft."

"The drummer subtly incorporated ghost notes to add a groovy, syncopated feel to the rhythm."

a musical notation symbol indicating where a performer should take a breath while playing or singing

"Breath mark indicates pause."

"A breath mark is a symbol in a musical score that indicates where the performer should take a breath."

a musical symbol that indicates the lowering of a note by two half steps or two semitones, equivalent to the same note as a natural but two half steps lower

"Double flat lowers note two steps."

"The key signature included a double flat to lower the pitch of the B note by a whole step."

a musical meter with a 4/4 time signature, indicating four beats per measure

"Common time is 4/4."

"Common time is another name for the four four time signature represented by a C symbol."

a musical notation indicating that the music should be played with a double beat, where the half note receives one beat

"Alla breve means half beat."

"The conductor signaled for the ensemble to play alla breve, giving the music a brisk, marching feel."

a musical interval that is half the size of a semitone

"Quarter tone divides half step."

"A quarter tone is a musical interval half the size of a semitone used in some microtonal music."

a sign written at the beginning of a musical composition in the form of a fraction showing the number of beats in each bar

"Time signature indicates beats per measure."

"The time signature is a symbol at the beginning of a piece that indicates how many beats are in each measure."

a musical term indicating that a note or passage should be played with a marked emphasis or accent

"Marcato means emphasize strongly."

"The composer marked the opening theme with marcato to ensure it was played with powerful emphasis."

a musical term indicating that a note should be held for its full duration, typically marked by a horizontal line or dash above or below the note

"Tenuto holds note fully."

"Tenuto is an articulation mark that indicates a note should be held for its full length."

a musical technique where the notes of a chord are played individually in a sequence rather than simultaneously

"The pianist played a fast arpeggio"

"The pianist played a beautiful arpeggio, letting each note of the chord ring out clearly before moving to the next."

a musical ornament that is played quickly before the main note and is not essential to the harmony or melody of a piece of music

"Grace note ornaments main note."

"A grace note is a very short ornamental note played just before the main note."

the set of marks at the beginning of a printed piece of music, indicating the key in which the piece is played

"Key signature indicates scale."

"The key signature is the set of sharps or flats at the beginning of a staff that indicate the key of the piece."

a musical ornament indicating a rapid alternation between a note and the note above or below it

"Mordent rapidly alternates notes."

"A mordent is a musical ornament that rapidly alternates a note with the note immediately below or above it."

a notation symbol consisting of two vertical lines with dots or arrows, indicating that a section of music should be repeated from the beginning or a designated point

"Repeat sign repeats section."

"A repeat sign is a symbol that indicates a section of a piece should be played again."

a notation that indicates a grouping of a specific number of notes or beats within a time value, allowing for irregular rhythms or subdivisions

"Tuplet divides beat irregularly."

"A tuplet is a group of notes that divides a beat into a different number of subdivisions than normally allowed."

the relative duration or length of a musical note or rest

"Note value indicates duration."

"Note value is the duration of a musical note relative to the beat."