Music transcends language, but to play music written in French, one must sometimes learn a new language! These vocabulary cards will give you many of the tools needed to decipher French sheet music.
There are 149 flash cards in this set (25 pages to print.)
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Preview of French Music Vocabulary flash cards:
Sample flash cards in this set:
| Questions | Answers |
|---|---|
| a, au | to [the], in the manner of |
| assez | quite, rather, fairly |
| alte | high, higher |
| encore | again, repeat |
| extremement | extremely |
| enchainez | ["attach"] proceed without stopping |
| basse | low, lower |
| cadence | extended improvisatory section |
| debut | beginning |
| coda | section added to the end |
| comme | as, as if, like |
| avec | with [the] |
| de, du | from [the], of [the] |
| divises | divided |
| et | and |
| fin | end |
| glissant | sliding from one pitch to the another |
| le, la, les | the |
| lie | ["tied"]smoothly, slurred |
| le meme, la meme | the same |
| mais | but |
| martele | ["hammered'} sharp, forceful, with quick releases |
| moins | less |
| demi-, mi- | half |
| mode ordinaire | return to normal manner of execution |
| tres | very |
| changez... en... | change... to... |
| non, pas | not |
| ou | or |
| autrement | alternate passage |
| octave | octave |
| plus | more |
| [un] peu | little |
| loure | ["carried"] semi-detached, between legato and staccato |
| premier, premiere | first, at first |
| signe | sign |
| toujours | always, still |
| sans | without |
| de meme | similarly |
| sourdine | mute |
| detache | ["separated"] detached |
| subitement | suddenly, immediately |
| sur | on, near, at |
| se tait | ["is silent"] does not play |
| tremolo | rapid repetition of a note or and alternation of notes |
| trop | too, too much |
| tous | all |
| unis | [in] unison |
| lent | slowly |
| large | broadly |
| un peu lent | somewhat faster than largo |
| a l'aise | ["at ease"] easily, unhurried |
| un peu a l'aise | somewhat faster than adagio |
| allant | ["walking"] flowing |
| un peu allant | somewhat close to andante |
| modere | moderately, neither fast nor slow |
| un peu anime | lively |
| vite | fast |
| tres vite | very fast |
| au mouvement | [return to] regular tempo |
| accelerez, serrez | becoming faster |
| elargissant | broadening |
| mouvemente | ["moved"] moving, agitated |
| mouvement | motion |
| ralentissez | becoming slower |
| cedez | ["delaying"] gradually slowing |
| retenu | ["kept back"] immediately slower |
| derobe | ["robbed"] flexible tempo |
| soutenu | sustained |
| presses | ["squeezing"] hastening, tightening |
| premier mouvement | original tempo |
| trainez | dragging |
| vif | briskly |
| tres vif | very briskly |
| tout doucement | as softly as possible PPP |
| tres doucement | very softly PP |
| doucement | softly P |
| mi-doux | medium softly MP |
| mi-fort | medium loudly MF |
| fort | loudly F |
| tres fort | very loudly FF |
| tout fort | as loudly as possible FFF |
| s'eteignant | fading away |
| augmentez | growing louder |
| s'affaiblissant | becoming softer |
| diminuant | diminishing in loudness |
| expirant | dying away |
| renforcant | (rfz) emphasized |
| accentue | (sfz) sharply accented |
| chantant | [singable] song like |
| commode | comfortably, without strain |
| chaleureusement | warmly, passionately |
| douce[ment] | sweetly |
| expressif | expressively |
| affectueusement | with affection, tenderly |
| agite | excitedly, restlessly |
| a volonte | at preformer's discretion |
| en style d'un air | in the manner of a [vocal' aria |
| verve | spirit |
| calme | calm, quieted |
| feu | ["fire"] intensity, ardor |
| jouant | playfully |
| juste | ["exactly"] strict[ly], precise[ly], appropriate[ly] |
| gracieux | gracefully |
| gout | taste |
| legerement | lightly |
| majestueux | majestically |
| marque | ["marked"], stressed |
| triste | sadly |
| lourde[ment] | heavily |
| decide, resolument | resolutely, decisively |
| badinant | jokingly |
| simplement | simply |
| bruyant | boisterously |
| tenu | held [possibly beyond its normal value] |
| ouvert | open |
| pavillon en l'air | bell raised |
| bouche | stopped, covered |
| lointain | distant |
| cuivre | brassy, blaring |
| tremolo avec la langue | flutter tongue |
| baguettes en bois | hard sticks |
| baguette d'eponge | soft sticks |
| timbre | with snares |
| couvert | covered [cloth on drum head] |
| laissez vibrer | let vibrate [ting] |
| sec | drily [without resonance] |
| au bord | at the edge [rim] |
| archet | bow, bowed, with the bow |
| bois, dos | wood, back of bow |
| pizzicato | plucked with out the bow |
| chevalet | bridge |
| pointe | point [tip of the bow] |
| jete, ricochet | ["jumping"] bouncing bow [several notes per stroke] |
| sautille | ["distinct"] bouncing bow [one note per stroke] |
| talon | frog [where the bow is held] |
| touche | fingerboard |
| ut, re, mi, fa, sol, la, si | C, D, E, F, G, A, B |
| flat | bemol |
| double flat | double bemol |
| sharp | diese |
| double sharp | double diese |
| natural | becarre |
| major | majeur |
| minor | mineur |
| dorian | dorien |
| phrygain | phrygien |
| lydian | lydien |
| mixolydian | mixlydien |
This set of flash cards belongs to these categories: music