DISJUNCT motion, or motion BY SKIP: motion to a note of much higher or lower pitch
PASSING NOTE: a brief dissonance caused by a voice moving by step between consonant notes
MOTIVE: a short melodic segment whose patterns of rhythm and pitch constantly recur
SUSPENSION: holding over of one note to create a dissonance [SG]
METER: the grouping of rhythmic beats into larger units [SG], e.g. duple meter (groups of two) [SG], triple meter (groups of three) [SG]
CADENCE: the last few (say two) notes, or chords, of a musical phrase [SG]
TEXT PAINTING or WORD PAINTING: vivid, literal depiction of text by music [SG]
MADRIGAL: a short, lighthearted piece on a secular theme for several unaccompanied voices [SG]
SONG: a short piece on a secular text for a solo voice
STROPHIC: of a song where different verses are sung to the same music [SG]
ORNAMENT: a decorative elaboration of a melody such as a MORDENT or TRILL, often improvised
MORDENT: an three-note ORNAMENT which moves quickly to an adjacent note, then quickly returns
SEQUENCE: a brief passage repeated at higher and higher (or lower and lower) pitches [SG]
SYNCOPATION: the placing of rhythmic stress at an irregular or unexpected instant
POINT OF IMITATION: a motive with which several imitating voices enter
HOMOPHONY: music with all voices having the same rhythm (as opposed to polyphony) [SG]
HEMIOLA: in triple meter, the momentary grouping of six beats as three groups of two