100 Singing Terms Explained: Glossary of Singing Terms

Internalize these useful singing terms as you progress in your musical journey.

1. 1. A cappella: A cappella is a performance style that features only the voice with no instrumental accompaniment.
2. 2. Absolute pitch: Absolute pitch is the ability to recognize a note simply by hearing it played with no relative pitch to compare it to.
3. 3. Accelerando: “Accelerando” is an Italian term indicating that a singer or player should speed up.
4. 4. Accidental: An accidental is a marking that accompanies a note on a sheet music staff that indicates a flat, a sharp, a double-flat, or a double-sharp. You can also use a "natural" accidental, which cancels out a previous accidental.
5. 5. Adagio: “Adagio” is an Italian term indicating a slow tempo or a relaxed section in a larger piece.
6. 6. Airflow: Airflow is in reference to the air that flows through a person's trachea and larynx to produce vocal sounds.
7. 7. Allegro: “Allegro” is an Italian term indicating a brisk tempo or a brisk section in a larger piece.
8. 8. Alto: Also called “contralto,” alto is a vocal register that is on the low end of most female voices.
9. 9. Andante: “Andante” is an Italian term indicating a "walking pace" tempo or section in a larger piece.
10. 10. Aria: An aria is a solo vocal piece that serves as a standalone song or featured moment within an opera.
11. 11. Atonal: Atonal music is music that is not connected to any diatonic key.
12. 12. Ballad: A ballad is a slow song or one that tells a story.
13. 13. Back phrasing: Back phrasing is a vocal technique where singers intentionally sing behind the beat.
14. 14. Baritone: Baritone is a vocal range for male voices that sits above the bass register and below the tenor register.
15. 15. Bass: Bass is the lowest range for male singers.
16. 16. Bel canto: Bel canto is an Italian term meaning "beautiful singing.” It is a popular opera technique.
17. 17. Belting: Belting is a form of vocal projection that emphasizes short, thick vocal folds and a blend of chest voice and head voice.
18. 18. Blending: Blending is a term in choral music that involves the meshing of voices into a single unified sound.
19. 19. Cadence: A cadence comes at the end of a musical phrase, the end of a movement, or the end of an entire piece.
20. 20. Cadenza: A cadenza is an elaborate section of an aria or vocal solo that accents the technical skill of a vocalist.
21. 21. Cantata: A cantata is a musical piece for voice and orchestra that is common in sacred music.
22. 22. Capo: “Capo” is an Italian term meaning the "head" or beginning of a piece.
23. 23. Chant: A chant involves singing in unison in a free rhythm.
24. 24. Chest voice: Chest voice is the "main" range of a person's singing voice. A chest register tends to be lower, resonant, and full of vocal overtones.
25. 25. Chiaroscuro: “Chiaroscuro” is a term that translates as "light-dark" and describes the range of human vocal timbres from chiaro (bright) to scuro (dark).
26. 26. Chorale: A chorale is a choral composition for human voices and instruments.
27. 27. Chord: Chords are notes played simultaneously or as part of the same musical passage.
28. 28. Coda: The coda is the closing section of a piece or a musical movement.
29. 29. Coloratura: A coloratura is a musical passage filled with trills and vocal flourishes.
30. 30. Concerto: A concerto is a classical music piece that highlights a solo instrumentalist who trades passages with an orchestra.
31. 31. Crescendo: A crescendo indicates that the player or singer should get louder.
32. 32. Decrescendo: A decrescendo, or diminuendo, indicates that the player or singer should get softer.
33. 33. Diaphragm: The diaphragm is the muscle that sits below your lungs and helps people push airflow through their vocal tract.
34. 34. Diction: Diction is the precise pronunciation of words in both singing and speaking.
35. 35. Diminuendo: A synonym for “decrescendo,” diminuendo is an instruction for a musician to get gradually softer.
36. 36. Diphthong: Diphthong is the term for two vowel sounds in the same syllable. Examples include "cloud," "coin," and "law."
37. 37. Dolce: “Dolce” is an Italian term meaning "sweet.” In the context of music, it means to play softly or with a light touch.
38. 38. Downbeat: The downbeat is the first beat of a musical piece or musical measure.
39. 39. Duet: A duet is a piece of music written for two performers or two vocalists.
40. 40. Enunciation: Enunciation is a synonym for diction that means careful articulation of words.
41. 41. Espressivo: “Espressivo” is an Italian term meaning "expressive." In the context of music, it is an instruction for the musician to play with an emphasis on physical expression.
42. 42. Étude: “Étude” is a French term that means "study." Études are practice pieces, but many are written to sound beautiful and even fit for concerts.
43. 43. Falsetto: Falsetto is a term that means "false singing." It refers to notes sung above a person's natural chest voice range. Some people use the term as a synonym for "head voice," but the two terms are slightly different as head voices can blend with chest voices. A true falsetto cannot do this.
44. 44. Fermata: A fermata is a musical marking that instructs a singer or a player to hold a note until they are ready to proceed or a conductor instructs them to proceed.
45. 45. Forte: “Forte” is an Italian term instructing players or singers to perform loudly and powerfully.
46. 46. Fortissimo: “Fortissimo” is an Italian term meaning “extremely loud.”
47. 47. Glissando: Glissando is a sliding technique connecting two notes.
48. 48. Head voice: Head voice is the highest part of a singer’s range. Falsetto singing is in a head voice, but not all head voice performances are falsetto. In some cases, a person's head voice can blend with their core chest voice.
49. 49. Hymn: A hymn is a sacred song of praise and devotion.
50. 50. Intermezzo: An intermezzo is a short interlude connecting two parts of a piece.
51. 51. Larynx: The larynx is the section of your vocal tract that contains your vocal cords.
52. 52. Legato: A legato is a performance technique that involves a fluid transition between notes. Unlike staccato notes, legato notes extend for the maximum duration indicated in sheet music notation.
53. 53. Libretto: The libretto is the "book" or set of lyrics in an opera or musical theater piece.
54. 54. Melisma: Melisma is a vocal technique that extends a single syllable over multiple notes.
55. 55. Mezzo-soprano: Mezzo-soprano is the middle vocal range for female vocalists. This voice type sits above an alto range and below a soprano range.
56. 56. Modulation: Modulation is a transition from one musical key to another.
57. 57. Motif: A motif is a musical phrase that establishes a recurring theme in a piece.
58. 58. Movement: A movement is a section in a larger piece. This term is commonly used in classical music but is considered pretentious in rock or pop music, where the term "section" is more common.
59. 59. Nasal: Singing that sounds confined to the area around the nasal cavity, creating a pinched sound with minimal overtones, is often described as “nasal.”
60. 60. Nodule: A nodule is a polyp that develops on vocal cords as a result of poor singing practices.
61. 61. Obbligato: An obbligato is an instrumental solo that comes along with an aria.
62. 62. Oratorio: An oratorio is a long-form cantata written for voice and instrumental accompaniment.
63. 63. Ostinato: Ostinato is a repeated musical phrase.
64. 64. Overtone: An overtone is a musical tone that resonates alongside a fundamental pitch. Rich, sonorous voices tend to produce more overtones.
65. 65. Passaggio: Passaggio is an Italian term that describes the transition zone between two vocal ranges.
66. 66. Patter: A patter song is a song featuring a steady, rapid succession of lyrics.
67. 67. Perfect pitch: Perfect pitch is the ability to name a note when given a reference pitch to compare it to. This is different from absolute pitch, which does not require a reference note.
68. 68. Phrasing: Phrasing is the way a singer or instrumentalist performs a passage, including note durations and short rests.
69. 69. Piano: While most know the word “piano” to describe the instrument, it is also an Italian term meaning "soft."
70. 70. Pianissimo: “Pianissimo” is an Italian term meaning "very soft."
71. 71. Portamento: Portamento is a mild slide from one note to another, like a subtle glissando.
72. 72. Presto: “Presto” is an Italian term meaning "very fast."
73. 73. Pure note: A pure note is a sustained note that is sung or performed without added vibrato.
74. 74. Recitative: Words sung in a steady, conversational singing style are described as recitative. This is the common format for an opera libretto between formal singing sections like arias.
75. 75. Register: “Register” is a descriptor for a vocal range or a type of singing.
76. 76. Reprise: A reprise is a repeated section of a piece. In pop music, it is often called the chorus.
77. 77. Requiem: A requiem is a musical piece that honors the dead.
78. 78. Resonance: Resonance is a series of vibrations that create a deep, harmonically rich sound. A singer's resonance may come from deep vibrations of their trachea and soft palate.
79. 79. Ritardando: “Ritardando” is an Italian term and instruction for a musician to slow down.
80. 80. Ritenuto: “Ritenuto” is an Italian term instructing performers to hold back, slow down, and potentially sustain notes.
81. 81. Rubato: “Rubato” is an Italian term instructing musicians to delve beyond a fixed tempo and to perform a bit faster or a bit slower depending upon their artistic inspiration.
82. 82. Scoop: Scoop is a type of singing or playing where you approach a note from a lower pitch and then slide up to the correct pitch.
83. 83. Sforzando: “Sforzando” is an Italian term meaning loud, powerful, and accented.
84. 84. Slur: A slur is a marking in musical notation that indicates one note should slide into the other in the style of legato.
85. 85. Solar plexus: The solar plexus is the section of your lower rib cage where the diaphragm is housed.
86. 86. Soprano: Soprano is the highest female vocal range.
87. 87. Staccato: Staccato is a musical performance style where notes cut off quickly, leaving small pockets of silence between each note attack.
88. 88. Strophic: “Strophic” is a descriptor for a musical passage where the same instrumental accompaniment repeats but the melody changes in terms of words or phrasing.
89. 89. Tenor: Tenor is the highest male vocal range. It sits above the baritone range but below the alto range for women. It is sometimes referred to as a countertenor.
90. 90. Tessitura: “Tessitura” is an Italian term that describes the typical range of notes in a piece. For instance, a piece for tenor vocals with a low tessitura means the tenor singer will mostly perform at the low end of his range.
91. 91. Tie: A tie is a musical notation mark that connects two notes together, indicating they should be performed continuously without silence between them.
92. 92. Timbre: “Timbre” describes the tonal characteristics of a musical instrument—including the human voice. Timbre is often determined by the relationship between a fundamental pitch and harmonic overtones.
93. 93. Transpose: To transpose is to change a piece of music to a new key.
94. 94. Trill: A trill is a rapid shift back and forth between two notes. Typically, a trill will fluctuate up and down by a half-step (a semitone) or a whole step (two semitones).
95. 95. Tremolo: Tremolo is the rapid repetition of a single note.
96. 96. Tutti: “Tutti” is an Italian term indicating an instrumental ensemble should all play together while a vocalist sits out.
97. 97. Unison: When two or more singers are singing the exact same notes, they are singing in unison. 98.Vibrato: Vibrato is a vocal and instrumental technique where instead of holding a single sustained note, a performer wavers ever so slightly between two pitches. This creates a sense of continuous motion.
98. 98. Vivace: “Vivace” is an Italian term and instruction for a musician to play very briskly.
99. 99. Voce: “Voce” is the Italian word for "voice."

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