Questions tagged [music]
Questions about the English terms related to music, and the proper usage of them.
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What is the word for music that is both a capella and instrumental?
Now, I know the terms "a capella" and "instrumental" are pretty incompatible, and to tell the truth, something like "Lyric-less" would fit better than "instrumental" in this case. Basically, I'm ...
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What would be the adjectival form of the word "sonata"?
Richard Wagner, it is said, looked down on "sonata form" as being too constraining. Roughly speaking, he objected to the long music passages with unchanging rhythm, with repeating cadences, ...
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What word or phrase describes this musical instrument?
The last time I saw one in the streets was back in the early 1960s, and it drew the attention of all passers-by as most people had never seen one before. Let me describe it:
It consists of a box with ...
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Precise word to differentiate "major" and "minor" in music
In a similar manner to the way that we use "sex" to differentiate male and female, I want to find the best word to differentiate major and minor.
The Wikipedia page on the subject did not use any ...
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Origin of “ish kabibble” as an interjection i.e. 'What, me worry?'
In New York in the mid-70s, my ethnic German bride-to-be introduced me to an expression :
“ish kabibble”
At the moment, I thought it kind of catchy, and have used it ever since in milder WTF ...
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On the origins of the use of "key" or "clavis" to refer to the keys of an organ
I'm in the middle of some research on the origins of the word "keyboard" to refer to the thing we all type on to communicate online these days. There's a clear genealogy backwards from the ...
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Phrase Request: Lyric Subversion [duplicate]
I've noticed this quite often from Disney sound tracks.
Lyrics are in a certain rhyming scheme - one line happens and the next line approaches the end of the line, but the last word subverts the rhyme....
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Is there a word for a person who makes wind instruments? [duplicate]
There's the word luthier for a string instrument maker, but with winds, the only option seem to be more like naming something in modern English, like "reedmaker" which would more apply to ...
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What did 'rap' mean in 1970?
I found these folders (think pee chees) among a pile of school supplies. They reference "rap" in sort of a hippie look (and... is that John Wayne??), dated 1970. Presumably wrap is referring to folder,...
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Etymology of "high" and "low" notes
The words "high" and "low" generally refer to magnitude or vertical distance. How did these words come to be associated with pitch?
We can draw comparison to high ("large") or low ("small") frequency,...
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Word similar to well-read but in the context of songs
He is well-read in romantic literature and his brother is ....... in blues songs.
Is there a word that can be used to convey the same idea as "well-read" but in the context of songs? In ...
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Why do some folk songs from 1930s Appalachia pronounce the word 'Jordan' as 'Jerdon'?
In two songs I've listened to recently, "River of Jordan" by The Carter Family (1929-1932) and "Wayfaring Stranger" by Doc Watson (1992, but was almost certainly first played much ...
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What does 'picket fence' mean here? [closed]
Today I was listening to a song from Fall Out boy called Miss missing you.
At one point in the song, they sing the line: "Baby you were my picket fence".
I know what a picket fence is, but I ...
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What do you call all the pieces of a song minus the lyrics
I think there must be a good word for this, but can't think of what it might be.
Harmony and Melody are pieces of it, beat seems simplistic, Instrumentation seems too scientific and dull.
Any Ideas?
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How do you describe a song that was released after the artist's death? [closed]
There are some words for movies released starring actors/actresses who died before their release. There are also similar words for books. But what is the equivalent term for a song or album released ...
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Looking for a word about writing lyrics for the purpose of fitting the music
There is a word that I'm desperately trying to remember. I think it is used in the context of songwriting but it could be more general.
It describes the act of writing words to fit music, or to rhyme, ...
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A word for a sudden shift in a song's complexity
Is there a noun associated with the part of a song where the instruments drop away very suddenly, with the purpose of creating suspense? To give you an example, I'm referring to moments like the one ...
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Notating timestamp in writing about music
I was wondering what is more commonly accepted in academic writing about music. I was using 1:00 to notate the minute and second mark something is happening in a track (for example, a new section ...
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Term for music that imitates speech
I have searched and asked others for the answer to this but have come up dry: What is the name or technique in music where musical notes approximate/imitate speech?
Note that I am not talking about ...
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What was Princeton 6 in Jamaican English?
I got an Old Raggae album and started listening to "Bam Bam" by Sister Nancy (youtube)
After listening several times, I could start making out the English words (lyrics):
A me seh one thing Nancy ...
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Playing from sheet music
What is the correct phrase for using sheet music while playing?
Example: I've never been good at...
1) playing by the sheets.
2) reading sheet music.
It should mean that I am able to read sheet ...
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Why is semibreve commonly pronounced as ˈsɛm iˌbriv?
I am seeing this on some dictionary sites: / ˈsɛm iˌbriv, -ˌbrɛv /
But, I've only heard it (in Anglophone musical contexts) as ˈsɛm iˌbriv.
I wasn't aware about a cafe breve until yesterday. This ...
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Is there a word for "piano reinterpretation"?
I really love the idea of people taking a simple melody, perhaps a well known one, and making their own piano interpretation of it, implementing some parts of the original and adding their own bit, ...
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What word describes a musical instrument's native character?
(I asked this question in the music stack exchange at https://music.stackexchange.com/questions/54865/what-word-describes-an-instrument-s-native-character but since I am looking for a word I'll ask ...
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Generic word for a verse, chorus, or bridge of a hymn or song
I'm working on a project that involves breaking a set of lyrics into “sections,” by splitting on double line breaks. Later on in the process, each section will be categorized as a verse, chorus, or ...
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What’s the meaning behind the lyric from Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy “and the ‘68 festival wallflowers are thinning? [closed]
Elton John/Bernie Taupin’s lyric line from Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy “and the ‘68 festival wallflowers are thinning” has continued to confuse me in its meaning. I understand “‘68 ...
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When and where did "clam" come to mean a missed note in a musical performance?
Someone just asked me in chat what a missed note in music is called. Without hesitation, I replied, "A clam." It's what I've always heard in academic and professional settings since forever.
Only now,...
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Is there a word for a style of art that is a great example of its own style? And a word that can be applied to its artist? [duplicate]
I was mainly thinking about musical artists whose songs have style that is very recognizable as an "artists name" song or as a specific genres song. Not a super pressing question but just ...
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What is the origin of the phrase "bo selecta"?
The phrase means literally "good song" or "good DJ". selecta is the DJ ("the selector"). But why that spelling? And where does bo come from? Is it from the French beau or the Latin bona? Is there a ...
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Term for describing auditory memory similar to 'eidetic' (for visual memory)
Is there a similar term for eidetic memory, but for sound?
An eidetic memory is the ability to remember things in exact detail, as if you can see them in your mind:
Cambridge
The measure of eidetic ...
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Rendition or Rendering?
What is a better choice between the words {1} Rendition and {2} Rendering?
For a reviewer of a piece of drama or music, which word is appropriate?
If we want to consider parts of speech:
Rendition ...
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Is there a verb for singing nonsense syllables to substitute for unknown lyrics?
Someone who doesn't know all the lyrics to a song might sing "la la la" or "dum dum dum" in place of the verses they don't know. Is there a verb for this? Similar to "humming" the tune, but with ...
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Using "Sequence" in music context
As a part of my academic paper, I wish to use the "Sequence" word.
Here is the problem:
As you can see in the picture, the "Start Time" of each note is mentioned on the time axis. ...
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Different types of whistling
Are there terms or succinct phrases that describe the different ways of whistling listed below?
The standard put-your-lips-together-and-blow
Tongue against bottom teeth
Sticking two fingers (thumb ...
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Is there a word for when a song leaves out a word or phrase despite it perfectly fitting? [duplicate]
I'm gonna be honest, I've been hearing my fair share of Steven Universe music from devices I'm not in control of from across the room. In a few songs I've noticed they will leave out a word but I ...
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That noise in old vinyls or rather shellac plates
How would you call the typical background noise in old phonograph records?
How would you call a record that sounds like that?
For an example from YouTube: Billie Holiday, You better go now, 1947
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Is there a general word for performing music? [duplicate]
If someone is performing music with an instrument, I'd say that they're playing the instrument.
If someone is performing music with their voice, I'd say that they're singing.
Is there a word that ...
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What term is used for the type of music that evokes a strong picture?
Some songs, such as Rodeo by Aaron Copland and Symphony No. 1 by Daniel Bukvich can evoke strong images in listener's ears. Rodeo has listeners imagining a wild west setting while Symphony No. 1 ...
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Why are reverb effects referred to as "wet" or "drippy"? [closed]
Reverb is a type of natural effect you can get playing in wide open spaces, giving a sort of echo/reverberation as the name implies. But I'm referring more to emulated reverb through use of a guitar ...
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What does "autolyco-sentimental" mean?
Wagner is said to have described Mayerbeer's operas as follows:
(translated into English and originally written in German, probably.)
"Meyerbeer ... wanted a monstrous, piebald, historico-romantic, ...
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In solfège, can you pronounce "sol" like "so"?
From the dictionaries, it seems like at least in American English, "sol" (as in "do, re, mi, fa, sol") is always pronounced "sole," but there's a spelling variation "so" is pronounced "so".
Oxford (...
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Is there a word or phrase for a concert where one composer's works are played?
Latvian has the word autorkoncerts, translated in the Latvian-English dictionary as one composer's concert.
Russian has the phrase авторский концерт, which literally means 'author's concert'.
Is ...
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What does "snappy number" mean in Jazz?
First, I am not sure whether it would be ok to ask a question like this in this category. If it is inappropriate, I'll erase it.
I bumped into Aaron Copland's saying, "... all American music could
...
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What is the origin of the music term 'grace note'?
A grace note (Wikipedia link) is a generally short-lived musical note, which serves to 'decorate' a melody, while not adding any time to it, or affecting the melody's structure in any significant way.
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Word for the opposite of electronic music
I'm looking for a word to distinguish electronic music from non-electronic music. I'd like to categorize into these two terms and I am aware that acoustic music or maybe even analog music might be the ...
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Why is a song's radio edit called a ‘7" version’?
For some reason, I used to think that a 7" version of a song was a 7-minute long version.
Then, I started noticing that most 7" versions I came across were in fact around 3:30 long. Upon further ...
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A word for an instrumental melody which copies the vocal part?
Sometimes in rock music you'll hear a guitar solo which reproduces the vocal melody: from the verse, for example.
Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana springs to mind - here's a link to the relevant ...
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"Let me tell you how the odds gonna stack up." [closed]
There's a linkin park song that uses this expression, what is the meaninig?
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Using your voice as an instrument
What are some words that describe using one's voice as an instrument, i.e. doing certain things with the voice, not necessarily just hitting particularly challenging higher/lower registers? Things ...
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Is a band referred to by "Who" or "What"?
If someone were to ask what your favorite band was, which of the following would be correct?
Who is your favorite band?
What is your favorite band?
I feel like this is obfuscated by groups named ...
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