…opens up more possibilities for you when working in various positions within the music industry.

This glossary of musical terms provides the definitions of the key words used in the Acoustics of Music article series. We believe it will greatly assist you…

For reference: The length of actual clock time for a note is set by the tempo designated by the composer and it is used for either the entire work or for specific passage within the composition. The tempo is the rate in which the music is performed. It is measured in beats per minute of clock time. Note shapes only determine the length of a specific note relative to other note shapes.

…whenever you are writing for a given instrument, you will need to know which clef you are writing on for proper placement of the notes when notating for a given instrument. You must also know how the instrument is tuned relative to the other instruments the composition calls for.

…I had an epiphany of sorts, of using something common in everyday life and something everyone knows about as a unique metaphor for explaining music’s secret stairway, the Grand Staff.

…you can more easily continue your study and review the various types of articulations available not only for the violin but for each instrument you may be employing when creating your next masterpiece.

For example, a Courante, was considered a bright and lively dance in the 16th century. A Pavanne was considered to be a grave, somber and a rather slow dance in comparison. Other examples would be a Galliard, played at a slow tempo, a Bouree considered to be a light and merry piece, a Sarabande where the tempo is slow, typical of work originating from composers Handel and Bach.

…we arrange these characteristics in such a way that we find it pleasing to listen to we call that music.