Rhythm
The division of time into set durations.
Beat
The regular, recurrent pulse that divides music into equal units of time; Whole notes, half notes, quarter notes, eighth notes, sixteenth notes
Meter
The organization of beats into regular groups; Duple, triple, compound
Accent
Placing emphasis on a certain beat or part of a beat.
Syncopation
Accenting a note at an unexpected time (on a weak beat or weak part of a beat).
Repeated rhythmic patterns
Short rhythmic units that are repeated over and over during a musical piece.
Polyrhythm
Playing more than one rhythmic pattern simultaneously.
Pitch
A musical sound heard at some point along the continuum of audible vibrations from the lowest to the highest audible sound. A pitch is also described as a number of oscillations per second or Hertz (ex. A440).
Dynamics
The relative loudness or softness of a sound or pitch(es).
Timbre or Tone Color
The quality of sound that distinguishes one instrument or voice from another. Use terms such as bright, covered, raspy, or smooth to describe timbre.
Key
The central note, scale, or chord within a piece of music, in relation to which all other tones of the composition are heard.
Scale
A series of pitches arranged in order from low to high or high to low.
Pentatonic Scale
Five note scales.
Interval
Two simultaneously heard pitches.
Chord
Three or more simultaneously heard pitches.
Arpeggio
The sounding of the individual tones of a chord in sequence rather than simultaneously.
Harmony
The organization of the chords of a piece in a key. A succession of harmonies in which each leads purposefully to the next.
Performing Media
The instruments and/or voices used to perform a piece of music.
Voices
soprano, alto, tenor, bass.
Instruments
brass, woodwinds, percussion, strings, keyboard, electronic.
Aerophones
Instruments that produce their sound by moving air through them.
Chordophones
Instruments that produce their sound by plucking or bowing a chord or chords (strings).
Membranophones
Instruments that produce their sound by striking a vibrating, stretched membrane.
Idiophones
Instruments that produce sound from the material of the instrument itself.
Texture
The sound of a piece of music that results from the interplay of musical lines.
Monophonic
Only one musical line is performed.
Polyphonic
Two or more musical lines are performed simultaneously.
Homophonic
A musical texture in which block chords are mostly heard.
Heterophonic
Performing a melody in two or more versions simultaneously.
Form
The organization of musical elements in time.
Melody
The most prominent tune heard in a piece of music; Wide or narrow range, up or down movement, overall shape
Tempo
The speed of a musical piece; Fast or slow
Style or genre
The characteristic way of using and combining melody, rhythm, timbre, dynamics, harmony, texture, and form in music.
Notation
A system for writing down music so that it may be reproduced and/or preserved.