Dictionary: M

Middle finger of the right hand See p,i,m,a in Left & Right Hand Fingerings

but

machine, mechanism

a system of worm gears used to control the tension of the strings on string instruments

mighty, powerful

majesty, dignity

majesty, dignity

dignified, majestic, noble

conductor, master, teacher

conductor

harp with 20 strings in ancient Greece

a May song, a Spring song

major

a fancy

great

great

hand

hands

twentieth century music; music that is currently popular

but

master

majestic, majestically

majestic

majestically

majestic

major

See Table of Key Signatures See Table of Major & Melodic minor Scales See Musical Scales

occasion, time

a flamenco style

melancholy

melancholy

malice

up tempo Afro Cuban musical style that evolved in the 1940s and 50s

dying away

dying away

lack

a rare bass mandolin

a large mandolin, bearing six to eight courses of strings, in use during the Renaissance; a large mandolin a fifth below a standard mandolin

a lute shaped instrument with four to six pairs of strings, a fretted fingerboard, played with a plectrum

a lute shaped instrument with four to six pairs of strings, a fretted fingerboard, played with a plectrum

homemade lutes from Madagascar

a large mandolin, tuned an octave below a mandolin, also known as an octave mandolin

Swedish string instrument, similar to a mandolin

a large mandolin, bearing six to eight courses of strings, in use during the Renaissance; a large mandolin a fifth below a standard mandolin

hands

shift on a fingerboard

fingerboard

graces, ornaments

men

aspects of Renaissance and Baroque music where the music mirrors textual detail

great crescendos and diminuendos that ranged from pianissimo to fortissimo

rapid upward arpeggio over a large range, combined with a crescendo

scale passages in measured tremolo, combined with a crescendo

hand Mani (Italian) hands

a document bearing the notation of a composition, normally with the composer's handwritten notation of a composition

marking

accented, marked

instrumental music with a repeated and regular rhythm such as might appropriately accompany a marching group

march

march

tale

march

traditional Mexican ensemble consisting of, bass guitar, guitar trumpets, and violins

accented, emphasized, marked

vigorous

a box shaped zither from Madagascar with strings on both sides

accented, emphasized, marked

popular roots based urban rhythm from Mozambique

march

hammer

hammered

hammered, strongly marked

martial songs

in march style

a masked ball

music used in connection with the functions of the freemasons

(1792 1853) See Classical Guitarists and Composers

a morning song

a bowed lute adorned with a horse head at the top of the instrument from China and Mongolia

Moorish

Moorish Mauro Giuliani (1781 1829) See Classical Guitarists and Composers Mazurka a moderately fast, triple time, traditional dance from Poland ori…

bar

same

the third degree of the scale

pertaining to the Middle Ages

potpourri of melodies taken from other compositions and strung together

more, many

several

of or pertaining to song; lyric; tuneful

a musical composition relating to song

See Table of Major & Melodic minor Scales See Musical Scales

melody

music with a pleasing melody

the horizontal dimension in music, where the vertical dimension arises from the harmony

same

less

less

less movement, slower

minuet Menuetto (Italian) minuet

brass

sadness

mournful, sad

mournful, sad

beat, measure, time

half

the organization of music or verse into units of accented and unaccented beats

the organization of music or verse into units of accented and unaccented beats

the method of changing tempos precisely by making some note value in the first tempo equal to a different note value in the second tempo

electronic or mechanical device for establishing the tempo of a piece of music

An indication of the speed at which a piece is to be played. see metronome mark in Phrasing Symbols

to put

put

to put

half

medium

halfway between loud and soft see dynamic symbols in Phrasing Symbols

halfway between loud and soft see dynamic symbols in Phrasing Symbols

mezzo forte halfway between soft and loud

tritone

Burmese three stringed instrument in the shape of a crocodile

music which makes use of intervals smaller than a half step

intervals smaller than a half step

period from about 500 AD until about 1430 AD

See clef in Staff, Barline, & Clef

Musical Instrument Digital Interface. MIDI is a specification for the types of control signals that can be sent from one electronic music device to…

(1878 1938) See Classical Guitarists and Composers

middle

military

military

military

a regimental band made up of woodwind, brass and percussion

percussion instrument used by Hungarian Gypsy musicians

Argentine country dance

menacing

menacingly

in a menacing manner

less

minor

half note see Note Values

a half rest

half note see Note Values

love

(Descending) See Musical Scales

having the interval of a minor third between the first and third degrees of the scale See Table of Key Signatures See Table of Major & Melodic mino…

minor

entertainer who covered a wide range of activities from light farce to the performance of serious song

a graceful French dance in simple triple time often appearing as a section of extended works

minuet trio minuet form in a moderate triple meter that is often the third movement of the Classical sonata cycle

minuet

term used to describe a part appearing upside down, which if set directly below the original part it would appear like the other reflected in a mir…

putting

mystery

mysteriously

mystery

mystic

measure, bar; also strict time

measured; in strict time

with

pitiful

middle

changeable

moderate speed

moderate speed

music contemporized with the present generations

manner, mode

change of key

Modulation changes the home key during a composition. Composers use modulation to: create contrast between sections increase intensity prepare retu…

possible

less

half

minor

gentle

gently

much

a musical composition with only a single melody line

a musical composition that has only a single melody line

a musical composition that has only a single melody line

a composition based on a single theme

a single sustained, unvarying tone, or a succession of notes of the same tone

to raise

raise

mocking, waggish

gentleness or softness

gentle or soft

piece

a note ornament see mordant in Note Ornamentation

dying away

morning song

murmuring

murmuring

murmuring

murmuring

animated, moving

the smallest identifiable self existent element of melody or rhythm

the progress of a melody

the smallest identifiable self existent element of melody or rhythm

the smallest identifiable self existent element of melody or rhythm

the smallest identifiable self existent element of melody or rhythm

motion

continuous movement

the same speed as before

bantering

music that recurs and develops in the form of a quotation

movement

animated, bustling

clefs, such as the 'C' and 'G' clefs, which, to facilitate writing the notes on the staff rather than having to resort to ledger lines

a self contained section from a symphony, suite, sonata, concerto……….

moving

motion, impulse

an Afro Cuban rhythm

mezzo piano, halfway between soft and loud

tired

to reduce the sound of an instrument

effortless

contemporary works of art that employ several distinct art forms, such as sculpture and music or painting and light art

music in which there are changing time signatures

performing two or more tones simultaneously

performing two or more notes simultaneously on a violin, etc.

lively

playing style where the bass consists of quick alternating octaves rather than slower, longer notes, in either case, the progression would have bee…

murmuring

murmuring

organized sound

the sharpening or flattening of notes prescribed or permitted in modal music for the purpose of avoiding certain intervals, harmonies or whatever

an ancient doctrine originating with the Greeks that implies that the universe and everything in it is in harmony

the use of music to cure or to bring physical or psychological relief

the sharpening or flattening of notes prescribed or permitted in modal music for the purpose of avoiding certain intervals, harmonies or whatever

Puerto Rican music

northern Mexican popular music

recitative

serious music

a popular successor to musical comedy

a play with songs and music, catchy, comic and romantic

periods when Western music was written

See Musical Scales

a medley of popular tunes

a castrato

the study of music

musicology

electrically combined sounds derived from natural sources rather than musical instruments

boldness, courage

change

to shift from one hexachord to another, relaying on a pivot pitch

to shift from one hexachord to another, relaying on a pivot pitch

a device to reduce or eliminate the sound coming from an instrument

boldness, courage

bold

bold

mysterious