- Accents / Accented
-
An accent mark is positioned over a note to highlight that the note should be played
with more emphasis. It is generally accepted that an accented note is played louder
than unaccented notes. The accent used in the Essential Guitar Skills course is
the third symbol in the diagram above. The most common is the horizontal accent,
the fourth symbol in the diagram above; this is the symbol that most musicians mean
when they say accent mark.
- Accidentals
-
Signs that make the following notes sharp or
flat or natural. Accidentals continue for the remainder
of the measure, or bar, in which they
occur. Once a bar line is passed, the effect of the accidental
ends, except when a note affected by an accidental (either explicit or implied from
earlier in the bar) is tied to the same note across a bar line.
- Accompaniment / (to) Accompany
-
Music played by other members of the ensemble to support the
principal performance being played by another member.
To play along with other musicians, but normally in a lesser (support) role.
- Alternating Hand Pattern
-
This is the term used for describing the effect an odd numbered subdivision has
on a single stroke roll, where the hand falling on the
beat alternates every beat.
- Alternate Picking
-
Alternate picking is the technique used by bass players to develop greater fluency.
When playing eighth notes the first finger picks on the beats and the second finger is used for the ‘+’
of each beat, effectively alternating the picking.
- Arpeggio
-
Arpeggio is a chord spread out with one note being played
one note after another, usually from the bottom of the chord to the top. Sometimes
called a broken chord.
- Arranger
-
A musician who adapts a composition for particular voices or instruments or for
another style of performance.
- Ascending Scale
-
A scale starting on the root note and
played up to the octave note.
- Backbeat
-
A loud and persistent beat on the second and fourth beats in a bar played on the
snare drum. The back beat clearly distinguishes rock music
from it’s origins of rhythm, blues and
jazz.
- Bar chord
-
See barre chord.
- Barre
-
A barre is when a finger (usually 1st finger) is extended across more than one string
at a time.
- Barre Chord
-
A barre chord (often called bar chords) is a guitar chord played by holding down
more than one string with the index finger (finger 1 of the fretting hand) and not
playing any open strings.
- Bar(s)
-
Music is ordered into bars (or ‘measures’). Bars divide the music into
a given number of beats. For example, there may be 4 beats or 3 beats in a bar.
In common time there are 4 beats in a bar. A bar is the space
between two vertical lines on the stave and these lines are
called bar lines.
- Bar Lines
-
Bar lines (or barlines) are vertical lines drawn on the stave
at the end of each bar.
- Bass Clef
-
The bass clef is used for low pitch instruments and is the musical
stave used to display notation for the bass guitar.
For the keyboard, notes below Middle C are usually played with the left hand.
- Bass Drum
-
The deepest/lowest sounding drum in the modern drum kit. The bass drum lies on the
floor and is operated by a foot pedal.
- Bass Guitar Chart
-
The music the bassist is asked to follow when playing a piece of music. The original
score has the entire bands parts on it and from that the arranger creates a part
for each member of the band. Also known as bass guitar guide.
- Bass Guitar Guide
-
See bass guitar chart.
- Beams
-
We use beams to join notes together into groups. Often used in the joining of 4
sixteenth notes and / or 2 eighth notes
into one beat of common time. Beams are only used with notes
that have tails. Quarter notes and half notes cannot be beamed.
- Beat(s)
-
A beat is the measurement of the ‘pulse’ felt in music. We can both
feel and count the beats in a bar. Different beats affect
the feel and tempo of the tune. A metronome
helps the musician play to the beat.
- Blues
-
Originally an African American style of musical composition. It was generally sung
as an unhappy lament of a love affair. In more recent times it has become used to
describe a mood of song rather than style.
- Breakdown
-
This is where the piece of music drops some instruments out and effectively 'breaks
down' some of the parts played. This helps build dynamics
and provides the listener with a contrast without writing a new section.
- Broken Chord
-
See arpeggio.
- Bridge
-
See middle eight.
- Brushes
-
Brushes are a set of bristles (metal or plastic) connected to a handle so that the
bristles make a fan shape. The handles are commonly made of wood or aluminum, and
are often coated with rubber. Some brushes are telescoping, so that the bristles
can be pulled inside a hollow handle and the fan made by the bristles can be of
variable length, width and density. Retracting the bristles also protects the brush
when it is not being used.
Brushes add texture and sound not possible with sticks. For instance, silky swish
sounds on coated heads and the delicate ‘ting’ sound on cymbals are
only possible with thin wire or nylon brushes.
- Chorus
-
In contemporary songs the chorus tends to denote the main theme of the tune (often
referred to as the ’hook’) and contrasts from the verse
in terms of melody and dynamics.
- Chord(s)
-
A combination of notes, used as the basis of creating harmony. A chord is made up
of at least two notes.
- Chord Box(es)
-
A chord box is a diagram of the fretboard, used to demonstrate
the position of the fingers of the fretting hand on the fretboard
in forming chords.
- Chord Progression
-
Songs often contain several chords linked together to form
a chord progression, which becomes the basis of a song.
- Clef(s)
-
See treble clef and bass clef.
- Clicks
-
These are often used when playing in a studio to help keep the band in time. The
clicks give the tempo to the drummer, often the
beats in the bar. The click sound is produced by either a sequencer or drum
machine and is listened to through headphones or a click monitor.
- Coda
-
The coda was originally intended to be the final and clinching part of the tune,
in that it did not develop the composition any further. Although not always the
case, it is often the final part of a tune, taken after a number of repetitions
of verses and chorus.
- Coda Sign
-
Is a musical sign, generally accepted to signify that the musician jumps from the
coda sign in the music to the section denoted as coda, usually
after a D.S al coda instruction.
- Common Time
-
Music is ordered into bars, and each bar has a defined number
of beats within it, providing the pulse of the music. The
most commonly used pulse in rock music is that of 4 beats. So, music that has 4
beats in a bar is often described as being written in ’common time’.
- Composer
-
A composer is a person who writes music.
- Compound Time
-
Where there is a mixture of simple time and
triplet notes, creating a mixture of rhythm.
- Crash Cymbal
-
The crash cymbal is mostly used for punctuating accents. The
sound is one of a slow attack and long decay and is best used with the punch and
cushion of a bass drum underneath it, giving it depth. When
used with soft mallets they produce a long shimmering sound,
which is a perfect percussive sound effect.
- Cross Stick
-
The top rim of the drum can be struck as well as the drumhead
to create a ’chipping sound’ when the stick is laid across the drum.
Often used in quieter passages of songs.
- Crotchet
-
See quarter note.
- Curls
-
Curls are a very expressive technique found in all forms of lead guitar playing
from blues through to metal. A curl is similar to a string bend
in execution but does a totally different job.
Whereas a string bend creates a different note to the fret on which the bend is
started, a curl does not bend into a new note. It merely curls away (higher) from
it's original pitch and a new note is picked/played (or the string muted) before
the curl reaches its apparent destination.
- Cymbals
-
Cymbals are an important part of the modern drum kit and percussion family of instruments.
They are plate shaped discs, made of bronze and other metals. Cymbals are often
positioned around a drum kit on stands and are struck either with
sticks, mallets or brushes.
Cymbals have no definite pitch, but may have higher and lower
sounds.
- Damping
-
Damping is a technique for preventing strings or a drum skin from vibrating. A guitarist
might rest his palm against the strings and a drummer might leave the stick on the
drum skin, or actually place material on the drum head to reduce vibrations. Guitarists
use damping a lot in palm muting.
- Dance Hall
-
A type of Jamaican popular music which developed around the late 1970s. This musical
genre (style or family of musical styles) is associated with ska,
reggae and rocksteady.
- Descending Scale
-
A scale where you start on the octave
note and play down to the root note.
- Disco
-
Disco is a style of music that became part of popular music in the mid to late 1970’s.
Typical exponents of Disco music were the Bee Gees who wrote the soundtrack for
the famous Saturday Night Fever Film in 1977 that epitomised Disco Dance culture
of that time.
- Dominant
-
The fifth note in a scale and the second most important note in a scale. It is known
as a 'perfect fifth' because it is always in harmony with
the root note.
- Dots
-
These are marks in music that follow a note to indicate that the note should be
increased in length by half of its value.
- Dotted Eighth Note
-
This is an eighth note that has a dot after it, increasing
its value from half of a beat to three quarters of a beat.
- Dotted Eighth Note Rest
-
This is an eighth note rest that has a dot after it, increasing
its value from half of a beat to three quarters of a beat.
- Dotted Quarter Note
-
This is a quarter note that has a dot after it, increasing
its value from 1 beat to 1 and a half beats.
- Dotted Quarter Note Rest
-
This is a quarter note rest that has a dot after it, increasing
its value from 1 beat to 1 and a half beats.
- Double Bar Line
-
Often referred to as ’tram lines’, this denotes the end, or beginning
of a new section in a song/tune
- Downbeat
-
The first beat of a bar (measure)
of music.
- Down-strokes
-
Strumming a guitar involves the use of both down and up-strokes.
The down-strokes are played by strumming from the bottom E string up to the top
E string - string 6 to string 1. Because of the way the guitar is held, the strumming
hand moves downwards when playing a down-stroke.
- Drum Chart
-
The music the drummer is asked to follow when playing a piece of music. The original
score has the entire band’s parts on it and from that the arranger creates
a part for each member of the band.
- Drum Fills
-
Drum fills are where the drummer plays a pattern or rhythm which is a break from
the groove of the song. Often used to highlight changes in
the song structure to create a change in dynamic intensity in the music.
- Drum Guide
-
See drum chart.
- Drum Map
-
A drum map describes which drum is represented by which note on the musical
stave. For example, notes in the bottom space of the stave are
bass drum notes. The middle space is where the snare drum
note is placed. See Classroom Resources for example of a drum map.
- DS al Coda
-
Is a musical instruction meaning to ‘Go to the Sign,
and then take the Coda’.
- Duration
-
In standard music notation, the duration (time length) of
a particular note is defined by how long it lasts compared to a whole
note.
- Dynamic(s)
-
In music, dynamics refers to the softness or loudness (volume) of a sound or note.
The term is also applied to the written or printed musical notation used to indicate
dynamics.
- Fill
-
See drum fills
- Fine
-
Fine is Italian for finish and is found at the end of a piece of music.
- Fingerboard
-
See fretboard.
- First Time Bar
-
This bar is played at the end of a repeated section the first
time the section is played.
- 5 (Five) Chords
-
Also known as power chords, technically they are known as 5 chords as they have
only two notes in the chord —the root
and the 5th. They are called power chords as they are often used to provide a powerful
sound and are used a lot in rock music.
- Flats (b)
-
This (b) is the sign that when placed before a note reduces (flattens)
its pitch by a semitone.
- Flattened Third
-
By taking a major scale and then flattening the
pitch of the 3rd note in the scale by a semitone this
has the effect of changing a chord from major to minor. This
is called a flattened 3rd.
- Floor Tom
-
See lo-tom.
- 4/4 (Four Four)
-
Is a time signature, often referred to as common
time, but meaning 4 beats of quarter notes
in a bar.
- Four-on-the-floor
-
In drumming, the bass drum plays four quarter notes all the way through the bar.
It is typical of reggae music and is called playing 'four
on the floor'.
- Fretboard
-
Also known as the fingerboard. The neck of the guitar/bass
guitar is where guitarists/bass players place their fingers on the strings to form
chords and play notes.
- Fretted String
-
A fretted string occurs when the note is played by placing the fretting
hand finger on the fretboard on the note required.
- Frets
-
The frets are the spaces on the fretboard between the fret
markers (fret wires). The nearer the fret is to the body of the guitar the higher
the note.
- Fretting Hand
-
The fretting hand is the one used to play the fretboard on
the guitar.
- Half Note
-
A half note is worth 2 beats and looks like a clear circle
with a stem. It is worth half a whole note.
In classical terminology a half note is called a minim.
- Hammer-on
-
When playing either a guitar or a bass, a 'hammer-on' is when the first of a pair
of notes (often joined by a tie) is played as normal, by plucking
the fretted string. In the case of the second, higher pitched, note, the sting is
not plucked again with the right hand but the note is fretted firmly (hammered)
with the left hand finger only.
- Harmony
-
Refers to notes of different pitch being played (or sung) at the same time. May
be thought of as referring to the 'vertical' aspects of music, whereas
melody refers to the 'horizontal' movement in music.
- Head Stock
-
The head stock is at the top of the guitar at the end of the fretboard/neck
of a guitar/bass. It is where the machine heads are usually
located. Some guitars/basses such as Steinbergers and the Stewart Stow-Away do not
use headstocks and are known as ‘headless’ guitars — these guitars
use special strings.
- Hi-hat
-
The Hi-hat (or hihat) is made up of two cymbals, with one on top of the other. They
sit together on a stand that is operated by a foot pedal. The hi-hats are played
by striking them with a stick, normally with the foot pressing down on the pedal
and the cymbals close together. The Hi-hats can also played by closing the cymbals
together, using the foot on the pedal.
- Hi-tom
-
The hi-tom, is a drum with skins on both sides of the drum. You play the top head,
known as the ‘batter head’. It will be the tom
drum with the highest relative sound (pitch).
The sound from a tom is generally rounded as the shape of the drum is such that
the two skins resonate together to produce the same tone. Tuning is very important.
In the majority of instances the bottom head should be the same tension as the top
head. You can vary the tensions between skins but this will affect the decay of
the sound after the drum has been struck. If the bottom head is looser the sound
will drop, if tighter it will rise.
- Hip-hop (Hiphop, Hip hop)
-
A music genre and a cultural movement developed in New York City starting in the
1970s, predominantly by African Americans and Latinos. Since first emerging in the
Bronx, hip hop music has grown into an entire lifestyle, commonly referred to as
hip hop culture, which has today spread around the world and is practised by many
people regardless of nationality, ethnicity or religion. Hip hop as a cultural movement
encompasses a wide array of human activities, so called elements, including but
not limited to hip hop music, breakdance, graffiti, DJing and MCing (rapping).
- House
-
House is a musical style of popular dance music that became part of the 90s popular
club scene.
- Machine Heads
-
The machine heads, located on the headstock, can be tightened
or loosened to tune the guitar strings. Tightening the strings sharpens the sound
and loosening them flattens the sound.
- Major Scales
-
A major scale is a series of single notes progressing upwards and downwards within
an octave. Specifically a major scale has intervals of a tone
between each note, with the exception of the intervals between 3-4 and 7-8 notes,
which are semitones.
- Mallets
-
Mallets are drum sticks used by percussionists to play a variety of instruments.
They are made up of a stick with a soft felt end which provides a more cushioned
percussive strike to the standard wooden or plastic bead generally used for playing
the drum kit.
- Measure
-
Another name for a bar.
- Melody
-
A melody is a succession of notes which have an organised and recognisable pattern
or shape.
- Metronome
-
A metronome is a music device that provides a steady beat.
It helps the player establish the correct tempo of the piece
of music. Metronomes can play at all tempos and once set at the desired tempo they
play the beat continually.
- Mid-tom
-
The mid-tom, is a drum with skins on both sides of the drum. You play the top head,
known as the ’batter head’. It is the tom drum
with relative sound (pitch) being in the middle of the three
standard toms.
- Middle Eight
-
Much pop music follows a thirty-two bar form often referred to as AABA. The middle
eight is the 'B' part of a song where the melody and the mood of the song changes
before returning to the original (A). It is sometimes also known as the
bridge. It is also common for the middle eight to be other than 8 bars in
length.
- Minim
-
See half note.
- Minor Scales
-
A minor scale is a series of single notes progressing upwards and downwards within
an octave. Specifically a minor scale has intervals of a tone
between each note, with the exception of the interval between 2-3 and 5-6, which
are semitones.
- Minor Triads
-
A minor triad is a triad with the 3rd note being flattened
by a semitone.
- Monotone
-
A rhythm written on one pitch (on one note).
- Muscle Memory
-
Muscles learn motions so that they develop an ability to recognise a previously
performed movement. The more often a movement is repeated the better the performance
of the muscles in response, as they develop greater familiarity with the motion.
- Musical Pick-up
-
An instrumental part introducing the next bar. It may be a run of a few notes that
leads into the main body of a piece or introduces a new section. It is often the
case that a solo instrument plays this pick-up.
- Natural Notes
-
A natural note is one that is neither sharpened nor flattened. On a piano keyboard
the natural notes are identified by the white keys (A,B,C,D,E,F,G).
- Natural Sign (
)
-
The purpose of a natural sign is to cancel a flat or
sharp from either a preceding note or the key signature.
Naturals are assumed (by default) in key signatures — ie. any note not identified
as a sharp or flat is deemed to be a natural note.
- Non-lead Hand
-
A drummer has a preferred hand that they invariably lead with. In most cases this
is the right hand. Accordingly, that hand is called the lead hand
and the other hand the non-lead hand. So for right handed drummers the lead hand
is their right and their non-lead is their left. A left handed drummer’s lead
hand is their left and their non-lead hand is their right.
- Notation
-
The marks in written music that are used to represent notes,
rests, expression, timing, dynamics, etc.
- Note(s)
-
A note is a symbol on the stave which represents the
pitch and duration of a sound.
- Note Head
-
The note head is the circle on the stave that represents the
position of the note within the bar. There are different note
heads for different note values and voices of instruments, including the drum kit.
For instance, whole notes and half notes
are clear circles, whereas all other notes values are black circles. For drums,
traditional note heads as described above, but for cymbals
a cross (x) is used, in order to distinguish between cymbals and drums.
- Palm Muting
-
Palm muting is the technique of damping the strings with the plectrum
hand when striking the strings, hence creating a tight and clipped sound. Used a
lot in rock music when playing rhythm guitar.
- Perfect Fifth
-
See dominant.
- Phrase
-
A short musical passage contained within a composition, of indetermined length but
normally between a beat and four bars
of length that creates either a recognisable harmonic and or rhythmic pattern.
- Phrasing
-
Phrasing is the playing of harmonic figures by the drummer using a system that enables
the drummer to catch the rhythm whilst playing a drum roll.
Generally, using a single stroke roll, but can be played in
any sticking.
- Pick
-
See plectrum.
- Picking
-
See alternate picking.
- Pickup, (Pick-up), (Pick up)
-
(a) A series of notes that precedes the first note of the first bar
(of a section) of music. Their purpose is to 'lead into', 'set up', 'anticipate'
or 'pick up' the tune.
(b) A device that captures mechanical vibrations (usually from stringed instruments
such as the electric guitar or electric bass) and converts them to an electrical
signal which can be amplified and recorded.
- Pitch
-
The term ‘pitch of a note’ refers to how high, or how low, the note
sounds. The pitch is determined by the speed of the vibration of the sound. Faster
vibrations create higher pitched notes than slower moving vibrations. On a guitar,
the thickness and length of the string determine the pitch of the note when the
string is struck.
- Playing in Position
-
Playing in position position on a guitar/bass means that you can play all the notes
you need to without moving your fretting hand. Ordinarily,
this means that you are able to use different fingers on your fretting hand to play
the different notes within your pattern.
- Plectrum
-
Also known as a pick, this is the piece of (usually) plastic held in the right (strumming)
hand that is used to strike the strings with. They come in varying degrees of stiffness.
- Power Chords
-
See 5 chords.
- Practice Pad
-
A practice pad is normally made of rubber and simulates the feel of a drum. It is
quiet to play and often used to for practice when noise is a problem.
- Pushes
-
A term used to indicate that the rhythm seems to push early
into the next beat.
- Recording Session
-
This is a period of time allotted for music to be recorded. Generally, a recording
session is 3 hours long and takes place in a recording studio with other musicians.
Sessions can be longer, depending upon the amount of musical material to be recorded.
- Reggae
-
A music genre (style) developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s.
The term 'reggae' is sometimes used in a broad sense to refer to most types of Jamaican
music, although the word specifically indicates a particular music style that originated
after the development of ska and rocksteady.
Reggae is based on a rhythm style characterized by regular chops on the off-beat,
known as the skank. The tempo is generally slower than that found in
ska and rocksteady. Reggae is often associated with
the Rastafari movement, which influenced many prominent reggae musicians in the
1970s and 1980s.
- Repeat Signs
-
Two horizontal lines, one which is thick, the other that is thin, followed by two
dots, one above the other represent a section of music, collection of
bars that should be repeated. If the dots are on the right of the lines
this denotes the beginning of the repeated section. Dots to the left denote where
the repeat ends and from this point you return to the beginning of the repeated
section. See Essential Drum Skills - Lesson 6.
- Rests
-
These are marks in music notation which show where there should be silence and how
long the silence should last.
- Rhythm(ic)
-
Rhythm is technically everything in music other than pitch
that contributes to the pulse, emphasis and forward movement of time.
- Rhythm Guitar
-
Rhythm guitar refers to the part played by a guitarist that is generally a rhythmic
accompaniment and usually involves playing of chords.
- Ride Line
-
A regular rhythmical pattern played on a cymbal - generally the hi-hat or ride cymbal.
- Rim
-
The rim is the metal or wooden ring that is used to secure the drum skin to the
drum. The rim has holes to enable the tension rods to be screwed into the tension
boxes. The rim can be struck as well as the drumhead to create a ‘chipping
sound’ when the stick is laid across the drum. A ‘rim
shot’ occurs when both rim and the centre of the drum head are struck
at the same time.
- Rim Shot
-
A ‘Rim Shot’ occurs when both rim and the centre
of the drum head are struck at the same time with the same drum stick.
- Rock Groove
-
The term ‘rock groove’ describes the strong beat
played by the drummer emphasising the 4 beats in the bar typical of
rock music. It is generally accepted that the snare drum
plays a loud and persistent beat on the second and fourth beats in a bar (which
is often referred to as the ‘backbeat’). The back
beat clearly distinguishes rock music from it’s origins of rhythm,
blues and jazz.
- Rock Music
-
Rock music has evolved from the late 1940’s rhythm recordings and the 1950s
rock-and-roll style of music. It is difficult to be precise about when rock music
began. However, in the period of rapid social change after the Second World War,
the music of African Americans began to seep into white American teenage culture
giving rise to this new type (genre) of music. Modern day examples of rock bands
would be: 1960’s Led Zeppelin; 1970’s Deep Purple; 1980’s Whitesnake;
1990’s Guns ’n’ Roses; and 2000s Alien Ant Farm.
- Rocksteady
-
A music genre popular in Jamaica in the late 1960s. It came after
ska and before reggae.
- Root
-
The root is the first note in a chord and comes from the name
of the chord. For instance the triad of A is made up of A,
C# and E. The A is the name of the chord and the first note. Accordingly it is called
the root as it is at the bottom of the chord. The C# is the 3rd and the E is the
5th.
- Root and Fifth
-
On the bass, the root and fifth is played by playing the root
note and then playing the fifth which is found across one string (towards higher
pitched string) and up two frets.
On the guitar the same pattern applies for notes rooted on stings 2, 4, 5 & 6. In
the case of notes rooted on the 3rd (G) string, the 5th is found by moving from
the root across one string and up three frets. In the case of the 1st string the
fifth will be found 7 frets above the root.
A power chord on the guitar is formed by playing just two
notes, the root and the fifth — usually rooted on the 6th or the 5th string.
On keyboards the 5th is the fifth note in the scale counting
the root as the 1st. It is 7 semitones
above the root. The 5th is the same note in both the major and minor scale. E.g.
In the scale of C major: C(root), D, E ,F , G(5th),
A, B, C.
In the scale of C minor: C(root), D, Eb, F, G(5th),
Ab, Bb, C.
- Root Bass Note
-
The root bass note is the note from which a chord originates
or the lowest note when the chord is in its basic position.
- Root Position
-
This is when the chord is played in its most basic form with
the note from which the chord originates being played at the bottom of the chord.
- Run
-
A run is used to link up notes by playing a series of chords
or notes that connect. A run is usually short in length, typically lasting between
a beat and a bar.
- Scale
-
A scale is a series of single notes progressing upwards and downwards within an
octave. See major scale,
minor scale, ascending scale and descending
scale.
- Second Time Bar
-
This bar is played instead of the first time
bar when the repeat section is played for the second
time.
- Section
-
A part of a song (piece of music), such as a verse or a chorus. A complete, but not independent, musical idea. It
is denoted in the score by the use of double bar lines.
- Semibreve
-
See whole note.
- Semiquaver
-
See sixteenth note.
- Semitone
-
This is the smallest interval between notes (in Western music). It is the interval
between each note up or down. On a keyboard, the interval between any two adjacent
notes is called a semitone (e.g. B to C, or F to F#). On a guitar or bass
fretboard, a semitone is an interval of one fret on the same string eg.
G# (4th fret on the bass E string) is one fret above G (3rd fret on the bass E string).
- Session Players
-
These are musicians who play music professionally and are hired to play music for
a specific purpose such as the recording of music for recording artists, television
and radio shows etc. They are generally well trained musicians with an ability to
read music very well and play in a large variety of styles and musical situations.
- Setting Up
-
This is where the drummer precedes an accent or phrase with
a fill, which is intended to create an anticipation of the
accent/phrase that follows.
- Sharps (#)
-
When this sign (#) is placed before a note it raises (sharpens) its pitch by a semitone.
- Shuffle
-
Shuffle describes a feel of music associated with blues and
jazz, which uses tuplets.
- (The) Sign (
)
-
This sign is similar to a dollar sign and denotes the point to return to when instructed
with the term 'D.S. (Dal Segno)' which means 'Go to the Sign'.
- Simple Time
-
There are no triplets in simple time; all the notes can be
divided evenly in 2, such as whole notes, half
notes, quarter notes, sixteenth notes
etc.
- Single Stroke Roll
-
A drum roll is the playing of a series of even notes on a drum. A single stroke
roll is played with a single hit (stroke) per hand, alternating between the right
and left hand.
- Sixteenth Notes
-
A sixteenth note lasts for 1/4 of a beat and derives its name from the fact that
it divides a bar of common time into 16. It is worth a sixteenth
of a whole note.
In classical terminology a sixteenth note is called a semiquaver.
- Ska
-
A music genre (style) that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s. It was a key
influence on the development of rocksteady and
reggae.
- Skin
-
The drum skin is a circular plastic film that is spread across the top and bottom
of a drum. Striking the skin sounds a drum. The tension and tuning of the skins
plays a major part in the sound of the drum. The skin is a temporary but essential
part of the drum, like strings on a guitar, and is easily replaced when worn through
use.
- Snare
-
The snare is the collection of metal wires that are suspended beneath a
snare drum to make a rattling sound. The addition of a snare to a drum brightens
the drums tone and produces its unique sound.
- Snare Drum
-
The snare drum has a number of strands of metal wires across the bottom skin, which
resonates against the skin when struck. The strand of wires are called a
snare, hence the name of the drum. The snare drum is used a lot in rock
music to produce the backbeat.
- Staccato
-
The Italian word 'staccato' means 'detached'. It is used in music to describe notes
that are sounded in an abrupt/'chopped off' manner so that they do not seem to be
attached to the following notes. Silence makes up the remaining part of the duration
of the note. The rhythm is not affected.
They are usually notated by a dot over the head of the note when the stem is downward,
or by a dot below the head of the note when the stem is upward:
- Stave
-
These are the 5 horizontal lines and four spaces that music is written on. Each
space and line represents the position of particular note
or voice of the drum kit. See drum map.
- Stem
-
The stem is the vertical line attached to the note head that helps to identify the
note’s value or duration. Half notes and
quarter notes have just a stem. Eighth notes and
sixteenth notes have tails as well.
- Stick - Drum Stick
-
Shaped wooden object used to strike drums to produce sound. Usually made of hickory,
oak or hard maple.
- Stick Across
-
See cross stick.
- String Bend
-
String bending is a very commonly used technique and is one of the most exciting
sounds in lead guitar. When bending a string you take a given note and push it up
(or down) to create the sound of a different note usually one or two frets higher
than the fret you have your finger on.
Not to be confused with a curl.
- String Crossing
-
This is where the guitarist/bassist has to move from one string to another to play
the desired notes.
- Strumming
-
Strumming is the technique of playing the guitar strings by striking across the
strings on the body of the guitar using up strokes and
down strokes.
- Subdividing/Subdivisions
-
When referred to in music, subdividing is used to divide the beat
into smaller parts so as to enable a wide variety of notes
to be played of different lengths. By having a variety of notes of different lengths
(whole notes, half notes,
quarter notes, eighth notes, sixteenth notes,
etc.) more interesting rhythmic patterns can be created.
- Sub-dominant
-
The 4th note of the scale — 1 below (sub) the
dominant 5th.
- Sustain(ed)
-
Instruments with the shortest 'sustain' are usually drums; a drum beat begins to
fade almost instantly.
Consider a 'sustained' note played on a piano. When a note is sustained it continues
to sound until the key playing the note is released. As long as the key is depressed
the note will sound, although it will gradually fade until it becomes inaudible.
However, releasing the key will cut off the sound abruptly, ending it's sustain.
On a guitar a note will be 'sustained' after the string is struck, or plucked, until
the string is muted or damped e.g. by applying a palm mute
or by touching the string lightly, without pressing it against the frets, with the
fretting finger.
In the case of brass instruments or a pipe organ, the note may be sustained as long
as air continues to be blown through the instrument.
- Swing
-
A style of jazz playing which originated in the 1930s predominantly for dancing.
It is associated with big band music from artists such as Glen Miller, Art Shaw
and Gene Krupa.
- Syncopation
-
Syncopation is where the emphasis of the pulse of the music is 'off' the
beat.
- Tacet
-
Latin for "it is silent". In music the term is used to indicate that an instrument
does not play for a (long) period of time.
- Tails
-
These are the short lines that are attached to the stem of
a note that helps to identify the duration of the note. If a note has one tail it
is an eighth note. If it has two tails it is a
sixteenth note. When a group of tailed notes are joined together, they are
connected by ’beaming’ the tails. See beams.
- Tempo
-
Tempo is the speed at which a piece of music is performed. Tempo is measured in
beats per minute.
- Third
-
The third is the third note in a scale. A triad
chord for example is made up of the root, third and
fifth notes in a scale.
- Three Way Co-ordination
-
Playing the drum kit requires good co-ordination between both hands and both feet.
When a groove uses 3 drums/cymbals then three limbs need to
be used in a co-ordinated manner, hence the term ’three way co-ordination’.
The bass drum, snare drum and
hi-hat work together in rock and pop music at the centre of grooves. The
control of these three voices is a large part of developing three way co-ordination.
- Thumb-Under Technique
-
Where the thumb is used to reposition the fingering on the keyboard when playing
scales, or runs of more than 5 notes notes (see Lesson 2,
Essential Keyboard Skills course).
- Ties
-
A tie increases the length of a note by attaching the value of the following note
to it. A curved line between two notes signifies a tie.
- Time Signature
-
The time signature indicates the meter of the piece of music. In rock
music it normally comprises of the letter ‘C’ to represent
common time. It can also be made up of 2 numbers, the top one referring
to the number of beats in a bar, the
bottom number indicating what type of notes the beats represent. For example, 3/4
means 3 beats of quarter notes; 5/8 means 5 beats of eighth notes.
- Tom(s)
-
Shortened version of ’tom-tom’. On a standard drum kit you will find
a hi-tom, mid-tom and a lo-tom (sometimes called a floor tom). These provide additional
changes of pitch to add to the sounds of the drum kit. A tom
is normally mounted on the bass drum, or sits on the floor
(floor tom/lo-tom) and does not have a snare.
- Tonality
-
The tendency of music to have a 'centre'/'home note (pitch)
that the music revolves around. The music will sound incomplete until it returns
(resolves) to that pitch.
- Tone
-
A tone is an interval of two semitones. On a keyboard it is
the interval between any two notes which have one note between (e.g. C to D, E to
F#, Ab to Bb). On a guitar or bass fretboard, a tone is an
interval of two frets on the same string - e.g. A (5th fret on the bass E string)
is two frets above G (3rd fret on the bass E string).
- Tonic
-
See root
- Transferability
-
This is where a concept or principle can be reapplied to another part of the keyboard,
or neck of the guitar to simply transfer a pattern, therefore enabling the student
to learn the concept once and apply it in a multiple of situations.
- Treble Clef
-
The treble clef is used to display notation for higher pitched
instruments. The treble clef represents the notes above Middle C on the modern keyboard.
On the keyboard, notes in the treble clef are usually played with the right hand.
- Triad
-
A triad is a chord made up of three notes. Usually the triad
is made up of the root, third and fifth.
- Triplets
-
A group of 3 notes, or rests written where a group of 2 notes
is suggested by the time signature; ie. where it would appear
to have two eighth notes, there are 3 eighth
notes triplets.
- Tuplets
-
Any group of notes that uses a 3 feel and where time is divided by 3.
- 12-bar (Twelve-bar) blues
-
It is a very common chord sequence for bands to play. It is called a '12-bar' because
it has a total of twelve bars in the sequence. The blues can
be played in any key, but guitar and bass players prefer open
chords, that is, chords with several open strings: e.g. E-A-B7 or A-D-E7. Keyboardists
may prefer C-F-G7 or G-C-D7. Whichever the key chosen, the chord pattern is 1-4
-5 (root (tonic), sub-dominant
and dominant) - i.e. the root (first), fourth and fifth of
the chosen key. Where extended chords are used, the 7th variant
of the dominant is usually used.
- 12/8 (Twelve eighths)
-
Is a time signature meaning 12 beats of eighth
notes in a bar.
- Two Way Co-ordination
-
Playing the drum kit requires good co-ordination between both hands and both feet.
When a groove uses 2 drums/cymbals, then two limbs need to
be used in a co-ordinated manner, hence the term ’two way co-ordination’.
Two-way co-ordination is often used in developing co-ordination rather than in general
playing.