MUSIC & DANCE IN GRE

Remember these words; you may come across in GRE.



Anthem: highly emotional or dramatic song
Arabesque: short, ornamented composition for piano
Aria: a solo song in an opera
Bagatelle: a short, simple composition for piano
Ballad: a song narrating a story
Bar: measure of a set number of beats
Bass, baritone, tenor, alto: male voice from low to high pitch in that order
Baton: music conductor’s light rod
Bravura: impressive virtuoso performance
Cadenza: virtuoso passage at the end of a solo
Cantata: vocal composition with instrumental accompaniment
Canto: part of choral work with melody
Choir: group of singers especially in church service
Chord: two or more notes sounded together
Chorus: organized group of singers singing in unison
Composer: person who creates and writes down musical compositions
Concert: live performance of music before an audience
Concerto: composition for a sole instrument
Conductor: leader of an orchestra
Contralto, alto, soprano: female voice from low to high pitch in hat order
Crescendo: gradual, steady decrease in volume
Diminuendo: gradual, steady decrease in volume
Dirge: slow, mournful music for funeral
Ditty: simple, often humorous, song
Duet: composition for two instruments or voices
Dulcet: melodious
Ensemble: several musicians who perform together
Evensong: music for evening prayer
Falsetto: artificial method of singing used by males to obtain notes above their normal vocal range
Fanfare: trumpet flourish at dramatic entrance
Finale: closing part of a composition
Fusion: combination of jazz and electric rock
Hymn: religious or sacred song
Interlude: brief musical passage between parts of a longer piece or drama
Jazz: major modern popular music form
Libretto: words and text of an opera
Lullaby: song sung to lull a child to sleep
Maestro: respected conductor or composer
Minim: half note
Monody: elegy or dirge sung by one person
Motif: recurring subject or theme
Notation: standardized system of characters or symbols used to represent musical compositions
Octave: interval of eight diatonic tones
Octet: composition for eight instruments or voices
Opera: drama in which the text is entirely sung and acted to the accompaniment of orchestra
Operetta: light, romantic, comic opera
Orchestra: group of instrumentalists playing together
Overtone: acoustical frequency higher in frequency than the fundamentals
Overture: musical introduction to a ballet or an opera
Philharmonic : symphony orchestra
Pit: sunken area in front of a stage in which the orchestra sits
Pitch : frequency of tonal vibrations per second
Prelude: a musical introduction
Quartet: ensemble of four instruments or singers
Rap: dance-oriented pop music
Refrain: regularly occurring social figure
Reprise: repetition of a musical phrase
Requiem: composition for funeral mass
Rhythm: relationship of successive notes
Scale: series of notes arranged in equal intervals
Solo: composition for single instrument or voice
Sonata: composition in contrasting forms or keys
Staccato with abrupt, distinct breaks between notes
Strain: melody
Symphony: composition for an orchestra
Threnody: dirge, a song of lamentation at funeral
Timbre: characteristic quality of sound produced by an instrument
Tonic: first note of a scale
Tremolo: prominent vocal vibrato
Trio: composition for three instruments or voices
Virtuoso: performer with great technical skill
Waltz: music for German dance