| H |
German for the note 'B natural' |
| H |
after Eugene Helm who catalogued the music by C.P.E.
Bach (1714-1788); after Hess who catalogued the
unpublished works of Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827),
used only for works not catalogued by Kinsky & Halm;
after Wiley Hitchcock who catalogued the music of
Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1645-1704); after Cecil
Hopkinson the cataloguer of music by John Field
(1782-1837); catalogue of the music of George Frideric
Handel (1685-1759) by Berend Bäselt; catalogue of music
by Gustav Holst (1874-1934) prepared by his daughter
Imogen Holst; after Ronald M. Huntington the cataloguer
of music by Leo Sowerby (1895-1968); after Harry
Halbreich the cataloguer of the music of Bohuslav
Martinu (1890-1959) |
| Habanera |
owing its name to the Cuban capital Havana (in
Spanish, La Habana), where, at the beginning of
the nineteenth-century, the dance developed, with its
slow tempo, it was not long before Spanish soldiers
brought it back home to their native country where these
songs, with their compelling mix of Antillean musical
elements and sad folksong, became an important part of
Spain's own musical culture |
| Hachi |
Japanese cymbals used in Buddhist rites |
| Hackbräde |
(Swedish) the hammered dulcimer |
| Hackbrett |
(German) dulcimer |
| Haegum |
(Korean) two-string spike fiddle, of Chinese origin,
which is played with the bow inserted in between the two
strings called choonghyon and yuhyon
more... |
| Hahnebüchen |
(German) coarse, heavy |
| Hail Columbia |
Hail Columbia is the prescribed honours music
for the Vice President of the United States of America.
The Department of Defense arrangement of Hail
Columbia is performed following the completion of
Ruffles and Flourishes |
| Hail to the Chief |
Hail to the Chief is the prescribed honours
music for the President of the United States of America.
The Department of Defense arrangement of Hail to the
Chief is performed following the completion of
Ruffles and Flourishes |
| Hair |
the material, usually long, white hair from the tail
of horses raised in cold climates (since their hair is
stronger), used to 'string' the bow of certain stringed
musical instruments, although occasionally synthetic
(i.e. fiberglass) hair is supplied but it fails to hold
resin satisfactorily and feels 'wrong' |
| Hairpins |
the colloquial term for signs indicating graded
dynamic change, i.e. crescendo (marked '<') and
diminuendo (marked '>') |
| Häjedalspipa |
Swedish wooden flute |
| Halam |
Senegalese plucked lute. also known as kontingo,
xalam, ngoni and koni |
| Halay |
a square dance, originally from the west and south
of Turkey, in which the participants join hands, making
a circle, and the music and the dance start slowly but
gets faster and faster. It is danced with the
accompaniment of a drum and shrill pipe, especially on
holidays and weddings |
| Halb, Halbe |
(German) half |
| Halbenote |
 |
(German) a minim (half note), a note half
the value of a semibreve (whole note) |
|
| Halbe-pause |
 |
(German) a minim rest (half rest), a rest
half the value of a semibreve rest (whole rest)
|
|
| Halbsoprano |
(German) mezzo-soprano |
| Halbtenor |
(German) baritone |
| Half cadence, Half close |
imperfect cadence |
| Half-diminished seventh chord |
see 'Tristan chord'
see
seventh chords |
| Half note |
| |
a minim, a note half the value of a
semibreve (whole note)
|
|
| Half rest |
| |
a minim rest, a rest half the value of a
semibreve rest (whole rest)
|
|
| Half step |
a semitone |
| Half-valve |
the opening of stops or valves on instruments like
the trumpet, French horn, cornet and tuba, used by jazz
musicians when they are approaching a glissando,
attempting to change the pitch of a tone without hitting
the note or its closest interval, and in the process of
highlighting blue notes, for vibrato effects and
tremolos |
| Halk |
general term for Turkish folk music |
| Hallelujah |
(Hebrew) a song in praise of God, its Latinized form
being Alleluia |
| Hallen |
(German) to clang |
| Halling |
a Norwegian dance generally in 2/4 time |
| Halt |
(German) pause, the fermata sign |
| Halten |
(German) to hold, to sustain |
| Hammer |
part of the action of a piano that strikes the
strings to produce a note; used to strike a percussion
instrument such as a bell or chimes, for example, a
tubular bell |
| Hammer or hammered dulcimer |
see 'dulcimer' |
| Hammerclavier |
the name of Beethoven's pianoforte sonatas Op. 90,
101, 106, 109, 110, the name used to distinguish the
hammered strings of the pianoforte from the plucked
strings of the harpsichord |
| Hammond organ |
an electronic organ invented in the early 1930s by
Hammond Clock, which later became Hammond Organ |
| Hanacca or Hanakisch (Ger.), Hanaise (Fr.) |
Moravian dance in simple triple time |
| Hand, Hände |
(German) hand, hands |
| Hand bell |
hand bells, classified as percussion instruments,
come in various sizes, each size sounding a separate
pitch, and are usually played by a group of musicians,
either each holding a bell in each hand, or lifting them
from a table, in sets ranging in number from six to
sixty |
| Hand horn |
a French horn in which the player places a hand into
the bell to produce certain notes |
| Handel-Werke-Verzeichnis |
see 'HWV' |
| Hand organ |
the barrel organ |
| Handtrommel |
(German) tambourine |
| Hardanger fiddle |
a Norwegian folk fiddle with 4 strings above the
fingerboard and 4 or 5 sympathetic strings below, the
fingerboard being narrower and shorter than the standard
violin
more... |
| Hardi, Hardiment |
(French) bold, boldly |
| Hardingfele |
see 'Hardanger fiddle' |
| Hardingfela |
see 'Hardanger fiddle' |
| Harfe |
(German) harp |
| Härjedalspipa |
wooden whistle from Northwest Sweden |
| Harmonic |
relating to harmony, for example, harmonic minor
scale |
| Harmonic minor scale |
see
harmonic minor |
| Harmonica |
a mouth organ with reeds (mouth organ) -
more... ;
a set of glass bowls set horizontally to rotate in a
water filled chamber where the sound is generated by
touching lightly the edge of one of the bowls with a
wettened finger (musical glasses); a dulcimer with
strips of glass rather than strings (glass dulcimer) |
| Harmonic progression |
the movement from one chord to another, usually in
terms of their function |
| Harmonic rhythm |
the rate of harmonic change |
| Harmonics, Harmonic series |
elements of the aural spectrum
more... |
| Harmonie |
(French) a band of woodwind, brass and percussion |
| Harmonie, Cor d' |
(French) French horn without valves |
| Harmonie, Trompette d' |
(French) the modern-day trumpet |
| Harmoniemusik |
(German) a band of woodwind, brass and percussion |
| Harmonika |
(German) harmonica |
| Harmonique |
(French) harmonic |
| Harmonische Töne |
(German) harmonics |
| Harmonium |
an organ-like keyboard instrument, in which air is
pumped, using foot operated pedals, through a set of
reeds; in India, the harmonium also known as peti
or baja. This instrument is not a native Indian
instrument. It is a European instrument which was
imported in the ninteenth-century. It is a reed organ
with hand pumped bellows. Although it is a relatively
recent introduction, it has spread throughout the
subcontinent. Today, it is used in virtually every
musical genre except the south Indian classical
genre. |
| Harmony |
the relationship between notes when heard together,
often described as the vertical dimension in music,
where melody is the horizontal
more...
|
| Harp (Eng.), Harpe (Fr.) |
an instrument of ancient lineage in which strings
are plucked individually or in groups with the fingers
and thumbs of one or two hands
more... |
| Harpe |
(Norwegian) harp |
| Harpsical |
a corruption of the word 'harpsichord' |
| Harpsichord |
a large family of keyboard instruments, in which the
strings are plucked by plectra, including also spinets
and virginals |
| Harp stop |
a mechanism found on members of the harpischord
family to apply dampers to the strings so thinning and
softening their tone |
| Hart, Harte |
(German) hard, major |
| Hasapi |
two-stringed mandolin from Sumatra (Indonesia) |
| Hastig |
(German) hasty, impetuous |
| Hat a dao, Hat noi |
see ca tru |
| Haupango |
the Mexican Haupango is a descendant of the Spanish
son, but its rhythm is definitely of the new
world, combining 2/4 time with 3/4 time and 6/8 time,
creating cross rhythms of great complexity |
| Haupt |
(German) head, principal or chief |
| Hauptstimme |
(German) principal part or voice |
| Hauptthema |
(German) principal theme |
| Haut, Haute |
(French) high |
| Haut instruments |
loud instruments, particular those designed to be
played out of doors, for example, shawms and sackbuts |
| Hautbois, Hautboy |
(French, literally 'high wood', where 'high' refers
to its volume rather than its pitch) oboe |
| Haute dance |
(French) a dance in which the feet are lifted from
the ground (see also 'basse dance') |
| Havanaise |
(French) habanera |
| Hay, Haye |
a type of round dance or bransle, from the
French word for 'hedge' |
| Hayashi |
general term for a Japanese musical ensemble that
includes drums |
| Hayashi-bue |
bamboo transverse flute used in hayashi music |
| Hcau loun patt |
(Burmese, literally 'six drums') in fact this term
is applied to a set of eight drums played by a single
musician. Two large double-headed drums dominate and are
used to set the underlying rhythmic pattern, while, a
row of six smaller drums, set in front of the player,
are used to create constrasting higher pitched patterns |
| He |
(Chinese) old Chinese name for the sheng |
| Head |
a tight membrane, originally of animal skin but now
of a plastic material, stretched across the end of a
drum that is struck by a stick to create sounds; the tip
of sticks used to strike drums with; see 'note'; in
jazz, the main theme |
| Head arrangement |
in jazz, when a band plays an arrangement, worked
out during rehearsal but never written down, from memory |
| Head voice |
the highest register of the voice, so named because
when sung the singer feels that the vibrations are being
produced in the head; see also chest voice |
| Heel |
the end of the violin bow at which it is held |
| Heftig |
(German) violent, impetuous |
| Heiss |
(German) hot, ardent |
| Heiter |
(German) cheerful, clear |
| Hejjuj |
Arabic word for Gnawan lute (sintir) |
| Heldentenor |
(German) a tenor with a robust voice suitable for
opera roles |
| Helicon |
a type of tuba, invented in Vienna in 1845, that
coils around the players body, the precursor of the
sousaphone |
| Hell |
(German) clear, bright |
| Hemidemisemiquaver |
|
a sixty-fourth note, a note one sixty-fourth
the time value of a whole note or semibreve
|
|
| Hemidemisemiquaver rest |
 |
a sixty-fourth rest, a rest one sixty-fourth
the time value of a whole note rest or semibreve
rest |
|
| Helmholtz pitch notation |
see
Helmholtz pitch notation |
| Hemiola, Hemiolia |
a rhythmic pattern where two notes are played in the
time allotted to three or where three notes are played
in the time allotted to two (the latter is also called a
'triplet') |
| Hemitonium |
a semitone (half-step) |
| Heptachord, Heptatonic scale |
a scale of seven notes, for example, major and minor
scales |
| Herabstrich |
(German) down-bow on a violin or viola |
| Heraufstrich |
(German) up-bow on a violin or viola |
| Herbstlied |
(German) autumn song |
| Hernach |
(German) hereafter |
| Héroïque (Fr.), Heroisch (Ger.) |
heroic |
| Herstrich |
(German) down-stroke on the cello or double-bass |
| Hertz |
the unit in which the frequency of a note is
measured where one hertz is one cycle per second, named
for Heinrich Rudolf Hertz (1857-1894) a German physicist
who was the first to produce radio waves artificially -
the frequency range of human hearing is from 20Hz to
20kHz (20,000Hz). |
| Herunterstimmen |
(German) to tune a string down to a specified note |
| Herunterstrich |
(German) down-bow on the violin or viola |
| Hervorgehoben, Hervorragend |
(German) to emphasise a melody |
| Herzhaft |
(German) hearty, tender, charming |
| Hes |
(German) the note 'B flat' (more usually called 'B') |
| Heterophonic, Heterophony |
two or more lines performing the same melody but
applying different embellishments, a conjectural way of
performing medieval repertoire, for example, songs of
the troubadour and trouvère tradition; the term
heterophony was coined by Plato |
| Hexachord |
(Latin, hexachordum) a group of six
consecutive notes separated by a tone (whole-step) or
semitone (half-step), in particular with reference to
the solmization syllables proposed by Guido d'Arezzo;
there are three hexachords - (a) hard or durum
- from G (i.e. G, A, B natural, C, D, E); (b) natural
or naturale - from C (i.e. C, D, E F, G, A); (c)
soft or molle - from F but using B flat
(i.e. F, G, A, B flat, C, D) |
| Hexentanz |
(German) witches' dance |
| Hey, Heye |
see 'hay, haye' |
| Hidden fifths, Hidden octaves |
approaching fifths or octaves by similar motion can
produce the same effect as approaching fifths or octaves
by parallel motion. Adding a passing tone to a hidden
fifth produces a parallel fifth, for example. Since the
parallel fifth is implied by a missing note, approaching
fifths or octaves by similar motion is called hidden
fifths or octaves |
| Hier |
(German) here |
| Highland pipes |
Scottish bagpipes that are played standing, usually
in pipe bands. The chanter has eight holes. There are
two tenor drones, tuned an octave below the chanter and
a bass drone a further octave down |
| High Mass |
a celebration of the Roman Catholic Mass where the
prayers are sung, distinguishing it from a low Mass
where all the prayers are read or recited without music |
| Highlife |
a music style based on the kpanlogo rhythm,
that originated in Ghana in the 1920s and became popular
in neighboring Nigeria, a combination of tribal rhythms
with various European, American-style big band sounds,
and even Caribbean influences. It reached its maximum
popularity in the 1950s and 1960s in dance clubs
throughout West Africa, the name mocking the high living
lifestyle of its patrons |
| Hi-hat |
a pair of cymbals mounted horizontally which are
operated by a pedal and by being struck with a stick, an
essential part of a drum kit (q.v.) |
| Hinsterbend |
(German) dying away |
| Hinstrich |
(German) the up-stroke on a cello or double-bass |
| Hira-daiko |
flat drum; general term for a drum wider than it is
deep |
| Hirt |
(German) herd, herdsman |
| Hirtenlied |
(German) herdsman song |
| Hirtenschalmei |
(German) a capped double-reed shepherd's shawm
more... |
| His |
(German) the note 'B sharp' |
| Hisis |
(German) the note 'B double sharp' |
| Historically aware |
see 'authenticity' |
| Historically informed |
see 'authenticity' |
| Hne |
(Burmese) a small double-reed instrument; a larger
version of this instrument, the hne gyi, is use
on ceremonial occasions |
| Hob |
after Anthony van Hoboken the cataloguer of music by
Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) |
| Hoboe (sing.), Hoboen (pl.) |
(German) oboe |
| Hoboy |
old word for 'oboe' |
| Höchst |
(German) highest |
| Hochzeitmarsch |
(German) wedding march |
| Hochzeitszug |
(German) wedding procession |
| Hocket |
a rhythmic device in two part music in which rests
in one part alternately match notes in the other |
| Hoedown |
similar to a jig or reel, usually associated with
square dancing |
| Hoener |
after Hans Hoener the cataloguer of music by Georg
Phillip Telemann (1681-1767) |
| Hoff |
after Adolph Hoffman the cataloguer of music by
Georg Phillip Telemann (1681-1767) |
| Hoga |
see taepyongso |
| Hogaku |
Japanese classical music |
| Hojok |
see taepyongso |
| Hold |
see fermata |
| Holz |
(German) wood, woodwind |
| Holzbläser |
(German) woodwind players |
| Holzblasinstrumente |
(German) the woodwind |
| Holzblock, Holzblocktrommel |
(German) wood block |
| Holzharmonika |
(German) xylophone |
| Holzschlägel |
(German) wooden drum stick |
| Homophone |
two strings tuned to produce the same note |
| Homophonic, Homophony |
a musical composition for 2 or more parts with a
single melody line, all other parts serving as
accompaniments. |
| Homorhythmic |
polyphonic lines played together have the same
rhythm but independent melodies, for example, some
examples of medieval conductus, many modern day hymns |
| Hondo |
also cante hondo, a sad, Andalusian song
emplying microtones |
| Honey songs |
campfire songs from the Mbuti people (Central
African Pygmies) |
| Hooked Harp |
also called arpa anottolini in Italian, the
name describes a series of U shaped hooks set in its
wooden neck of a harp which enable a performer to change
keys relatively quickly. The hooks, adjusted by hand,
shorten the length of a string; this raises the pitch of
a note
more... |
| Höömeï |
Tuvan throat singing |
| Hoon |
(Korean) a tear-shaped globular ocarina made out of
clay
more... |
| Hop |
after Cecil Hopkinson the cataloguer of music by
John Field (1782-1837) |
| Hopak |
a Russian and Ukrainian folk dance |
| Hoquet |
hocket; the musical technique in which the flow of
the melody is interrupted by the insertion of rests and
the missing notes are supplied by another voice,
dividing the melody between two or more voices |
| Hora |
Balkan ring dances |
| Horagai |
a large shell used as trumpet-type instrument. The
horagai is not a Conch shell, but either the
Pacific Triton or the Shank shell |
| Horn |
a family of instruments made variously of metal,
animal horn or wood
more... |
| Hörner |
(German) horns |
| Hornpipe |
a lively dance resembling a jig in triple time in
the early sixteenth century, and in 4/4 time from the
mid-eighteenth century onwards, during which time it
became associated with sailors; a pipe with a reed
mouthpiece |
| Horo |
see hora |
| Hosho |
shaker (Zimbabwe) |
| House |
a performance hall or theatre, for example the opera
house; the area of the theatre or perfomance hall where,
during a performance, the audience sits |
| Hrotta |
crwth |
| Hübsch |
(German) pretty, dainty |
| Hsaing waing |
Burmese percussion ensemble which includes the
circle of 21 drums known as the patt waing,
pa'tala, saung gauk and hne
more... |
| Hsiao |
Chinese vertical flute made of bamboo |
| Hu |
Chinese bowed lute |
| Huada |
Chilean maracas |
| Hualaychos |
groups of roving Bolivian street musicians that play
during Christmas and New Year |
| Huapanguera |
a 9 string Mexican guitar from the Jarocho region.
It is used to play the huapango song and dance |
| Huayñitos |
Bolivian dance in which couples make small jumps and
choreographed stunts |
| Hu-ch'in |
one of most widely used chinese bowed lutes |
| Huehuetl |
pre-Hispanic Mexican long vertical drum made from a
hollow trunk that stands on three legs. The upper end is
covered with animal skin |
| Huit |
(French) eight |
| Huitième de soupir |
 |
(French) a demisemiquaver rest
(thirty-second rest), a rest one thirty-second
the time value of a semibreve rest (whole rest)
|
|
| Hula |
originally a sacred dance of Hawaii supposedly
created by the younger volcano Kala to please his sister
Pele, with sensual overtones, performed by women who
rock their hips back and forth |
| Hulusheng |
(Chinese, literally 'gourd sheng') found in southern
China and in the mountains of northern South-east Asia,
the naw or hulusheng is perhaps one of the
oldest members of the sheng family
more... |
| Hulusi |
a hollow gourd fitted with three bamboo pipes
(China)
more... |
| Huluxiao |
a gourd flute similar to the hulusi (China) |
| Hum |
to sing with lips closed |
| Hummel |
Dutch/Flemish instrument of the dulcimer family |
| Hum note |
the lowest frequency of a bell, a term used in
nineteenth-century bell foundries |
| Hüpfend |
(German) spiccato |
| Humoresque (Fr.), Humoreske (German) |
a term, first used by Robert Schumann (1810-1856),
applied to piano music of a capricious character |
| Hundertundachtundzwanzigstel,
Hundertundachtundzwanzigstelnote |
(German) a semihemidemisemiquaver |
| Hunting horn |
fashioned from animal horn and used to give signals
while hunting, whether on horseback or on foot |
| Huqin |
Chinese fiddle. The huqin was introduced into
China around 140 B. C., and has been one of the most
prevailing Chinese string instruments since that time.
The huqin in Chinese music's is equivalent to the
violin. The erhu, ching-hu, gao-hu
and ban-hu are the better known members of the
huqin family |
| Hurdy-gurdy |
a stringed instrument in which the strings are set
into vibration by the action of a hand-cranked rosined
wheel, some strings being stopped with small wooden
levers to produce tunes, other strings being left open
to act as drones
more... |
| Hurtig |
(German) nimble, agile |
| HW |
after H. Wohlforth the cataloguer of music by Johann
Christoph Friedrich Bach (1732-1795) |
| HWV |
Handel-Werke-Verzeichnis catalogue of the
works of George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) by Bäselt |
| Hyang-p'iri |
Korean shawm, cylindrical in form, with seven finger
holes
more... |
| Hydraulikon (Greek), Hydraulus (Latin s.),
Hydrauli (Latin pl.) |
(Greek, literally 'water pipe') Ktesibios
(Ctesibios) of Alexandria who lived between 300-230 BC,
invented the hydraulus, in which water pressure
was used to stabilize the wind supply. The pipes were
arranged in rows upon the wind chest and the air was
permitted to enter any pipe at will by means of wooden
sliders. The hydraulus was the prevailing organ
for several centuries and reappeared at intervals
throughout the Middle Ages |
| Hymn |
a song of praise |
| Hyooshigi |
wooden blocks used as clappers, struck at the tips |
| Hyperaeolian mode |
see 'locrian mode' |
