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Musical Terms: GTiD Glossary, Page 1
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12 bar blues: A very common chord progression of which there are many variations. The most basic "blues changes" are: I7-I7-I7-I7-IV7-IV7-I7-I7-V7-V7-I7-V7
Each roman numeral with a 7 after it is a dominant 7th chord, and lasts for one 4/4 bar. These 12 bars are played as a cycle.
12 tone equal-tempered system: A system devised in the 16th century A.D. which divides an octave into 12 equal parts (It's invention is often incorrectly attributed to J.S. Bach, who made equal temperament popular with his "Well-tempered Clavier" in the 18th century).
A
A 440 Hz: A vibration whose wavelength is 1/440th of a second. This is measured in Hertz, meaning that in this case there are 440 oscillations per second. The standard name for this note is A above middle C.
absolute pitch: Often incorrectly called "perfect pitch". It is the natural ability to recognize any pitch without the need of a previously known reference pitch. As with any other human perceptual ability, there is nothing "perfect" about it -the term absolute differentiates this faculty from relative pitch.
Aeolian mode: See modes.
B
bar: A bar is a cycle that contains a given number of beats of any given duration each. It is expressed as a fraction, where the top number represents the number of beats and the number below represents the value assigned to each beat. It is subdivided into strong and weak beats.
beat: The basic pulsations that set the tempo or speed of a piece of music.
C
chord: The most basic deffinition of chord is: a combination of two or more sounds played simultaneously. Some sources consider 3 -or even 4 parts- as the minimum number of tones for a chord to be rightfully called so. The chords that are most widely used are built by stacking 3ds, whether major or minor. These notes can be rearranged in succesive chord inversions, to achieve variations in the timbre of the chord.
chord progression: A chord progression is a series of chords in succession. Voice leading ensures that the changes flow adequately, or produces different dramatic effects.
chromatic scale: A scale which subdivides the octave into 12 equal parts. The interval between each pair of adjacent sounds in this scale is called a semitone.
clef: A clef is a sign placed on the staves (plural of staff), which sets a pitch height as a reference point for the rest of the staff.
consonance: The consonance/dissonance duality is an outdated, archaic concept which dates back to the Middle Ages. It originally linked moral values to the simultaneous combination of a pair of tones: some were "good", others "bad". There is actually no clear-cut dividing point between consonance and disonance, but a continuum of closer to gradually more distant intervalic relationships, determined by the harmonic series.
The standard in harmony courses is to consider the unison, the octave, and the perfect fifth and fourth as perfect consonances. The major third and minor sixth, and the minor third and major sixth are considered imperfect consoances, while all seconds and sevenths, and diminished and augmented intervals are considered dissonances.
D
degree: each note on a scale is called a degree: diatonic scales have 7 degrees.
diatonic scale: a scale subdivided into tones and semitones, and into two tetrachords.
dissonance: see consonance
dominant 7th chord: A 4 part chord which consists of: Root, Major 3rd, Perfect 5th, and Minor 7th is often called dominant chord. A more precise definition would include saying that it is a chord composed of these intervals on V, the dominant function: the V7 chord.
Dorian mode: See modes.
E
F
fretboard: The fingerboard of a stringed instrument which is divided by a number of transverse bars (usually metallic) which preset the division of the octave into a given number of steps. This means that any instrument with a fretboad is a tempered instrument. The guitar fretboard divides the octave into 12 equal parts.
G
guitar: A 12-tone-tempered plucked string instrument, usually with 6 strings, which took its modern form in the 1800s. Its evolution can be traced back to arabic plucked string instruments. Developments in the XXth and XXIst centuries include the use of transducers to amplifiy and manipulate its sound electronically.
H
harmonic or overtone: A soft, flute-like sound related to a fundamental or root, and whose vibration is induced by the root.
harmonic series: The harmonic series , or overtone series, is a series of increasingly higher pitched, everfarther related, and softer sounding harmonics related to any tone sounded. The sum total of all the harmonics present in a musical sound gives us its characteristic timbre.
The first 6 overtones are: Root, 8ve, 5th (+8ve), 8ve (+8ve), Major 3rd (+ 2 8ves), 5th (+ 2 8ves). These are the components of a major triad.
harmony: The use of consonance and dissonance to produce motion or staticity in music, as well as for dramatic or emotive effect.
I
interval: Intervals are defined by ratios that describe the relationship between two different tones -the frequency each has relative to the other. For example, A5 vibrates at 440Hz, and A6 vibrates at 880Hz: thus, the ratio that defines an octave is 1:2. Intervals are counted as steps within the diatonic scales: from C up to an E there is a 3rd. From C down to an E there is a 6th. Harmony treatises arbitrarily categorize them into perfect consonances, imperfect consonances, and dissonances. These are all subjective appreciations that have varied through the centuries and are subject to cultural bias (see consonance).
Ionian mode: See modes.
Coming soon: a glossary of musical terms with commonly used Italian, French and German wordsan etymological glossary of musical termsa glossary of Spanish musical terms related to the guitar
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