Music Terms Glossary: Tempo, Dynamics and Notation Explained

Tempo marks (with BPM chart)

Tempo marks sit at the top of the score and set the basic speed of the piece. Most are Italian, and each maps to a rough metronome range in BPM (beats per minute) — exact numbers vary by edition, so learn the relative speed and the character first.

If the score prints an exact metronome mark like "♩= 96", follow the number — the word then only describes character. For how to actually train these speeds with a metronome, see How to Use a Metronome: BPM, Tempo Marks and a 4-Step Practice Method.

Dynamics

Dynamics control volume — and they're relative: the same f means different things in different pieces and passages. What matters is keeping the levels clearly apart.

• pp (pianissimo, very soft) — barely above a whisper, fingertips staying close to the keys; common at phrase endings and in mysterious, quiet passages;
• p (piano, soft) — the base volume of lyrical passages; soft but never hollow, every note still speaks;
• mp (mezzo piano, moderately soft) — a step louder than p, the in-between layer on the soft side;
• mf (mezzo forte, moderately loud) — the default starting level when a score gives no dynamic at all;
• f (forte, loud) — full and powerful, produced with natural arm weight rather than hitting the keys;
• ff (fortissimo, very loud) — usually the dynamic peak of the piece, saved for climaxes and closing sections;
• cresc. (crescendo, growing louder) — volume increases gradually; also drawn as a long hairpin opening to the right;
• dim. (diminuendo, growing softer) — volume decreases gradually; decresc. (decrescendo) means exactly the same.

Expression and articulation

These terms tell you how to play: how notes connect, which ones stand out, how the tempo bends at phrase endings, and where the piece really ends after a repeat.

• legato (smooth, connected) — no gap between notes: the next key goes down the instant the previous one releases; the default for songlike phrases;
• staccato (short, detached) — each note sounds for roughly half its written value; notated as a small dot above or below the notehead;
• accent (>) — this note stands out, noticeably stronger than its neighbors — emphasis, not banging;
• fermata (pause) — hold the note or rest freely, typically one and a half to two times its value; the performer decides;
• ritardando (rit., slowing down) — the tempo eases off gradually, usually at phrase endings or the final bars, creating a sense of arrival;
• accelerando (accel., speeding up) — the tempo gradually pushes forward; the opposite of rit.;
• Da Capo (D.C., from the top) — go back to the beginning and play again; D.C. al Fine means "from the top, until Fine";
• Fine (the end) — the true stopping point after a repeat: on D.C. al Fine, return to the start and play through to the bar marked Fine.

Score symbols

The last group isn't words but symbols, drawn right next to the notes — they change pitches and decide the route through the piece.

• Sharp (♯) — raises a note by a half step; as an accidental it lasts until the end of the bar, then expires automatically;
• Flat (♭) — lowers a note by a half step, also for the rest of the bar only; printed next to the clef (a key signature), it applies to the whole piece;
• Natural (♮) — cancels a previous sharp or flat and restores the plain note; a classic trap in exam pieces;
• Repeat signs (𝄆 𝄇) — double bar plus two dots: play the enclosed section again; with first and second endings (1., 2.), skip the first ending on the second pass;
• Tie — joins two notes of the same pitch into one longer note: add the values, strike only once — don't replay the second note;
• Slur — arches over notes of different pitches: play the group legato as one phrase; it also marks where the music breathes;
• Octave signs (8va / 8vb) — 8va above the staff means play an octave higher, 8vb below means an octave lower, for as long as the dotted line runs.

All of these sit on top of the basic rules of staff notation. If note positions, time signatures and key signatures still feel shaky, read How to Read Sheet Music: A Beginner's Guide to Staff Notation first — this glossary gets far more useful afterwards.

Putting the terms to work

Don't memorize terms away from the music. The method that sticks is "meet it on the score, look it up, do it immediately". With every new piece, spend 30 seconds scanning first: the tempo mark sets your metronome number, the dynamics sketch the piece's volume map, the repeat signs decide the route — exactly the "read before you play" step from sight-reading training. Then record a run-through and listen back: did the crescendo actually grow? Were the staccatos short enough? A term is only learned once it becomes a difference your ears can hear.