Glossary

Accompaniment

The part of the music that is subordinate to a melody.

Beat

The basic pulse underlying a piece of music which may be stressed or unstressed.

Melody

The correct term for a tune.

Metre

The division of pulse into groups of 2, 3 or 4 beats.

Motif

The shortest possible fragment of music that can be perceived structurally.

Movement

A self-contained section of a larger piece of music such as a sonata or symphony. Movements are characterised by differing tempos and characters and in performance are separated from each other by a brief pause.

Pulse

The beat underlying a piece of music.

Rhythm

Patterns of short and long notes.

Rubato

A flexible approach to tempo in which slight increases or decreases in speed are used for expressive purposes.

Syncopated

A deliberate disturbance of normal metrical stress, e.g. accenting weak beats.

Tempo

The speed of music which is directly connected to the sense of pulse.