Glossary
accordion: a box-shaped instrument with a keyboard and bellows
Art Songs: traditional Western European classical music performed by one singer and one pianist
ballad: a story set to music
banjo: a stringed instrument whose strings are plucked; common in American folk and bluegrass music
brass family: instruments that are made of metal and played by buzzing into a mouthpiece
call and response: a common way to learn music in which one person sings part of the song (call), and another person repeats it (response)
cascara: Spanish for “shell”; the cascara is a rhythmic pattern played on the timbales
chorus: a musical section in a song with the same lyrics and melody that repeats after each verse
clave pattern: a two-bar rhythmic pattern that is the foundation of Afro-Cuban music
claves: a pair of wooden sticks that are struck together to play the clave pattern
coro: the Spanish word for “chorus”
Creole: culture of the Creole people, who are descendants of Haitian, French, and Spanish immigrants and Native American people who first settled in Louisiana
emotions: feelings
explorer: a person who uses his or her senses to learn about something
folk tale: a story passed through oral tradition from generation to generation
frottoir: a percussion instrument in zydeco music made from steel and worn over the shoulders; also known as a washboard or rubboard
gallop: a type of movement, similar to a horse galloping
guajeo: a repeated pattern of arpeggiated chords played on the piano
hoedown: a party in the country or on a farm
humming: singing without opening one’s lips
Lieder: German for “songs;” art songs by Austrian and German composers with German texts, generally written in the 19th century
lyrics: the words in a song
march: a type of music with a strong steady beat, originally written for bands marching in a parade
melody: the main tune of a piece of music, made up of pitches that go up and down
moñas: improvised, two-bar phrases that are repeated by the horn section in a salsa song
mood: the emotion or feeling created by a piece of music
opposite: things that are related but are very different from each other
oral tradition: the passing down of stories, songs, or other practices, from generation to generation through word of mouth
ornamentation: decoration that is added to make something fancier in music
patriotic: showing love or pride for your country
percussion family: group of instruments that produce sound when they are struck, shaken, or rubbed
poem: a group of words that expresses an emotion or idea, often with rhythm and patterns of sound
rhythm: pattern of sound and silence over a steady beat
salsa: the name given to Afro-Cuban dance music as it is played in New York City
sargam: a pattern of musical notes and syllables in Music of India, much like a scale
scale: a pattern of musical notes
solfège: the use of sol-fa syllables to name each note in a musical scale
steady beat: the pulse in music
tempo: the speed of music
tumbao: a repetitive rhythmic pattern heard on the bass, congas, and piano in salsa music
vibrations: the effect of the movement of air
zydeco: music of southern Louisiana that combines French dance melodies with Caribbean music and blues