About This Quiz
Did you spend the majority of your school years practicing a musical instrument? Do you remember all of the terminology you had to learn to be able to play music properly? If neither of these descriptions fits you, maybe you are just someone who has picked up a lot of musical terminology along the road of life. It doesn't matter how you came to learn music terminology, but you'll definitely need at least a little knowledge of it to ace this quiz. Let's get started to find out if you know as much as you think you do.
Just like any pursuit, music comes with its own set of vocabulary words. Some of this terminology is relatively obvious, but some of it is so difficult you will need at least some knowledge of music to be able to answer the questions properly. We've compiled a list of 35 of the most common music terms for you to work your way through, to find out if you know the basics of music. Anyone who has played music professionally had to learn these terms at some point, and these terms guide musicians as they play for the rest of us.
Are you ready to test your music terminology knowledge?
Adagio is a musical term that means to slow down the pace. The word can also be used in dance.
The word "accent" is a musical term for emphasis. This word was originally used to describe speech, but it works well to describe music as well.
Andante is an Italian word for a moderate or walking pace. When you see this word, you are to play the music at a medium pace.
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Even a non-music major knows that the word beat indicates a rhythm or pattern. The word "beat," used in this way, is a noun.
It's also the name of a car made by Kia. A cadenza is a solo that is not always in the score of the music, but is often a spur of the moment thing.
Chorale refers to music that was written for voices. The words "choir" and "chorus" are similar to chorale, and many people refer to a choir as a chorale.
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A chord is the playing of two or more notes at the same time. In singing, this may refer to a harmony of voices.
"Crescendo" is an Italian word that means to swell in sound - as in get louder. A crescendo often occurs before a drop in sound, or silence.
"Dolce" is an Italian word that means sweet and delicate. The word can also be used in cooking to refer to a dessert.
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"Ensemble" is a word that is used to describe a musical group. Many musical terms are Italian, but this one is French.
"Fermata" is an Italian word. The symbol for fermata tells a musician to hold the note longer than they would normally.
Lowering a note one half step makes the note flat. There is a special symbol for flat that musicians understand and read to tell them what to do.
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"Forte" is an Italian word that means loud and strong. Musical passages are sometimes marked to be played this way to add emphasis.
Fortissimo is an Italian word that means very loud. The symbol for fortissimo is "ff."
Harmony is the blending of pitches. This word stems from a Greek word that means "join together."
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A key is a set of related pitches or notes. Most musical arrangements are written in one key.
"Larghetto" is an Italian word used in music to indicate that the music should be a bit faster than largo, but a tad slower than andante. Technically, the word means "moderately slow."
"Largo" is an Italian word that means "slowly." The word means "broadly."
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Sure, a pub is a bar, but we're looking for musical terms here. A measure is a timed collection of notes.
Scores and operas are typically not short. A motif is identifiable as a musical passage, but it tends to be quite short.
This musical term combines two Italian words. The word "molto" means "very," and the word "vivace" means "fast."
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A movement is a word that, used in music, refers to a portion of a symphony. Each movement can stand on its own.
A note is a musical term for a sound. Notes also represent how long each sound lasts.
An octave is a group of eight notes. There are eight steps from the lowest note to the highest one, hence the name.
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An opus is a work of art, music, or some other endeavor. For some artists, the opus is the pinnacle of their work.
"Piano" is an Italian word for soft or low. Yeah, we know it's also a musical instrument. That's why you need to be familiar with musical terminology to ace this quiz.
"Pianissimo" is an Italian word that means softer than soft. The musical term for soft is "piano." So technically it's pianissimo, then piano. Confused?
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Pitch relates to how high or low a note sounds. This has nothing to do with baseball.
"Piu" is another word for "additional" or "more." Piu can be placed in front of other musical terms to clarify them. For instance, "piu forte" would mean more loud, or louder.
"Sempre" is an Italian word for "always." Used together with other words, this word adds meaning. For instance, "sempre forte" would mean "always loud," indicating that the music should always be played loud.
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"Sforzando" is an Italian word that means with emphasis or force. This word stems from the Italian word "sforzare," which means to show force.
Solo means alone in just about any terminology. However, in music, a solo is a noun, meaning a piece of music that is played by only one musician.
"Tempo" is a word that indicates the speed of a musical work. Tempo is actually an Italian word that means "time."
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The theme of the music is considered the most important part. The theme helps the listener understand the music. There is not always only one theme in a piece; there may be many.