NCEA Level 3 Music Studies key terms

A large-scale structure built on exposition (two contrasting themes in related keys), development (themes fragmented and recombined through new keys), and recapitulation (themes return, now in the tonic), often followed by a coda.

The opening section of a sonata-form or fugal movement where the main thematic material is presented; in sonata form it usually states a first subject in the tonic and a second subject in a related key.

The final main section of sonata form in which the exposition's themes return, with the second subject now restated in the tonic key so the movement resolves to its home tonality.

A concluding passage added after a work's main structural sections have finished, often reinforcing the tonic key and drawing the material to a close.

The principal melodic idea of a fugue or other contrapuntal work, stated first alone and then imitated by other voices in related keys.

In a fugue, a secondary melodic line that accompanies the subject when the subject is restated in another voice, usually in invertible counterpoint against it.

A contrapuntal form in which a subject is announced by one voice and then imitated and developed by the others, using episodes and entries in related keys.

A passage in a fugue or rondo that lies between statements of the main subject or theme, often modulating and built from motives derived from earlier material.

A form in which a recurring main theme alternates with contrasting episodes, commonly heard in final movements as ABACA or ABACABA.

A three-part structure in which a contrasting middle section is framed by two statements of the same opening material, giving the pattern ABA or ABA'.

A two-part structure, typically with each section repeated, where the first part moves away from the tonic and the second part returns to it.

A form in which an initial melody is presented and then restated several times, each time altered in rhythm, texture, harmony, instrumentation, or mood while remaining recognisable.

A short, distinctive melodic or rhythmic fragment that is repeated, developed, and transformed to generate larger musical structures.

The immediate repetition of a melodic or harmonic pattern at a higher or lower pitch level, common in Baroque and Classical music as a means of extending and modulating.

A texture or device in which one voice presents a melodic idea and another voice then repeats it, often at a different pitch or time.

A contrapuntal procedure in which one voice states a melody and one or more other voices repeat it exactly, entering later and often at a different pitch.

The art of combining two or more independent melodic lines so they sound together coherently, each retaining its own shape and character.

A texture in which two or more melodic lines of roughly equal importance sound simultaneously, as distinct from a melody accompanied by chords.

A texture in which a single melody is supported by chordal accompaniment moving largely in the same rhythm, or in which all parts move together chordally.

The way musical lines are combined and layered, described in terms such as monophonic, homophonic, polyphonic, thick, thin, or stratified.

The first degree and home note of a key or scale, to which music tends to return and around which harmonic tension and resolution are organised.

The fifth degree of a scale and the chord built on it; it creates strong tension that normally resolves to the tonic.

A melodic and harmonic formula that brings a phrase, section, or work to a point of rest, such as perfect, imperfect, plagal, or interrupted.

A coherent musical unit, often several bars long, that forms a complete melodic thought and is usually closed by a cadence.

A change from one key to another within a piece, achieved through pivot chords, chromatic alteration, or a dominant preparation of the new key.

The tonal centre of a passage, defined by the tonic note and the scale and harmonic relationships built on it, such as C major or A minor.

An ordered set of pitches spanning an octave that forms the melodic and harmonic basis of a key, such as major, natural minor, harmonic minor, or modes.

A succession of chords that underpins a passage, whose function and movement create tension, direction, and resolution within a key.

The particular combination of instruments or voices chosen for a work, and the way material is assigned among them.

The craft of scoring music for orchestra, involving choices of instruments, doublings, registers, and balance to realise a composer's intentions.

The distinctive tone colour or quality of a sound that lets a listener distinguish, for example, a flute from a violin playing the same pitch.

The degrees of loudness and softness in a performance, together with the markings and changes a composer writes to shape them.

The way individual notes are attacked and released, described by markings such as staccato, legato, accent, and slur.

The speed at which music is performed, indicated by terms such as allegro or adagio or by a metronome mark.

A flexible, expressive treatment of tempo in which the performer speeds up or slows down to shape a phrase, often compensating so the overall pulse is preserved.

The shaping of a musical line by the performer, using articulation, dynamics, breathing, and rubato to make its structure and expression clear.

Instrumental music that depicts or is inspired by an extra-musical idea, story, scene, or image, often described in a title or written programme.

Instrumental music composed for its own sake, without a stated narrative or pictorial programme, valued for its purely musical structure and expression.

A short, recurring musical idea associated with a particular character, object, place, or idea, developed and transformed as the drama unfolds.