Descriptionary

round a simple form of a canon; a song with two or more voice parts that echo, imitate, or overlap one another, such as "Three Blind Mice" or "Row, Row, Row Your Boat."

scat style of jazz singing characterized by nonsensi­cal syllables and other vocalizations other than lyrics.

serenade a love song, especially one sung under a lover's window at night.

shanty a work song sung by sailors to keep time in jobs involving teams. "Blow the Man Down" is a typical shanty.

solfeggio a vocal exercise employing the sol-fa syl­lables (do, re, mi, fa, sol, la, ti).

soprano the highest range of a female voice; the highest range of a young boy.

syllabic characterized by one note sung for each syl­lable of the lyrics.

tenor the highest range of a male voice.

WIND INSTRuMENTS

alpenhorn a long (sometimes as long as 12 feet) wooden horn used in the Alps to convey signals, call cattle, or play simple melodies.

aulos a shrill wind instrument of ancient Greece, characterized by several finger holes and a double reed; played two at a time, one in each hand by a single performer.

Bach trumpet a high-pitched trumpet originating in Bach's day and used in many of his compositions.

bagpipe Scottish instrument producing a haunting, droning sound through the use of several pipes and a windbag pumped with the arm.

bamboo pipe a simple recorderlike instrument made of bamboo.

barrel organ an instrument consisting of a wooden barrel with fixed pins or projections that automati­cally force air into organ pipes with each rotation, usually capable of playing only one tune.

basset horn a type of alto clarinet invented in the 18th century, characterized by a long, slender body and an up-curving metal bell, used frequently in the operas of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Richard Strauss.

bassoon a very long (8% feet doubled over) mem­ber of the oboe family producing sounds that are sometimes exceptionally comedic or sad.

block flute a recorder or flageolet.

bombardon a type of bass tuba.

bore the conical or cylindrical tube of a wind instrument.

cor de chasse a brass hunting horn originating in the 17th century.

cornet a small brass instrument similar to a trumpet and used in military bands.

crook a curved piece of tubing connecting to the reed with the body of a woodwind; it makes the instrument easier to hold.

crumhorn a J-shaped woodwind of the 16th and 17th centuries.

double reed a mouthpiece consisting of two pieces of cane bound together and between which air is blown; used in the oboe, English horn, bassoon, and others.

drone on a bagpipe, any one of the pipes producing a continuous unchanging pitch.

English flute a recorder.

English horn an alto oboe.

euphonium a brass tenor tuba rarely used in orches­tras but frequently seen in brass and military bands.

fife a small flute with six finger holes and having a lower pitch than a piccolo; usually used in military bands.

fipple flute another name for a recorder or flageolet; any flute blown from one end, as a whistle.

flugelhorn a brass instrument similar to a cornet but having a wider bore.

French horn a coiled brass instrument with a flar­ing bell 11 to 14 inches in diameter, used in orchestras and noted for its mellow sound.

harmonium a keyboardlike instrument that sounds like a pipe organ but is designed to work as a giant harmonica, specifically with air blown through reeds by pedal-operated bellows, popular in the 1800s.

heckelphone a woodwind similar to an oboe but having a larger bore and a more powerful tone, devel­oped in 1904.

helicon a large bass tuba that coils around the musician's body to facilitate carrying it in a marching band.

key any one of the small finger levers that open and close over hard-to-reach holes.

key bugle a bugle having keys to produce a wider range of notes, largely replaced by the valved cornet in 1850. Also known as the Kent bugle.

mellophone an instrument similar to the French horn but easier to play; primarily used in marching bands.

musette a French bagpipe popular in the 17th and 18th centuries.

oboe a double-reeded woodwind shaped like a clarinet and widely used in many orchestral com­positions.

oboe, baritone a large oboe with a pitch an octave below its standard counterpart.

ocarina a small, potato-shaped instrument having 10 holes and producing a whistlelike sound.

oliphant a horn made from an elephant tusk.

panpipes an instrument consisting of four to 12 small pipes of graduating length banded together and blown into to produce different notes; known as a syrinx by the ancient Greeks. Also known as the pan flute.

piccolo a small flute having a pitch one octave higher than a flute.