Alphabetical Definitions

Term	Definitions	Example Sheet Music and Midi files from www.8notes.com and Amazon
.
accelerando	quickening, getting faster little by little
adagio	very slow	Bach Jesu, bleibet meine freude
allegro	fast, cheerful	Beethoven Ode To Joy
andante	moderate	Bizet; Habanera
a tempo	return to previous time
common time	4/4 time, quadruple meter	Grieg; In the Hall of the Mountain King Mendelssohn; Wedding March
duple meter	2 beats to a meter
grave	extremely slow and solemn
largo	very slow	Chopin; Funeral March
presto	very fast	Joplin; The Entertainer
ritardando	gradually getting slower
rubato	flexible time
tempo	rate or speed of the music
tempo di marcia or alla marcia	marching	Tchaikovsky March of the Nutcracker
vivace	a lively tempo	Traditonal French Alouette Vivaldi Spring Traditional Isreali Hava Nagila
waltz time	3/4 time	Strauss Blue Danube Wahlteufel Skater's Waltz Traditional Greensleeves

By Time
 

slowest fastest

grave:  extremely slow and solemn (funeral, graveside) largo: very slow (giants dragging their feet) adagio:  very slow ritardando: gradually getting slower  andante:  moderate rubato: flexible time  vivace: a lively tempo (vivacious) allegro:  fast, cheerful presto: very fast (A magician's hands are quicker than the eye)

As the time becomes faster, the notes tend to become shorter and the rests fewer. 
As the time becomes slower, notes are held longer with rests and pauses more pronounced.
 

Printable Wordsearch Puzzles: Time and Tone Vocabulary
Worksheet Number 1
Worksheet Number 2
 
 

Submitted by:  © Elaine Ernst Schneider  is a freelance writer and a teacher. She has been writing since high school and has published articles, songs, and children's work. Presently, Elaine is a curriculum author for Group Publishing and also writes the City Songs column for www.newcolonist.com ezine.

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