Glossary
Music & Woodwind Glossary
Plain-English definitions of 92 terms used by wind players and musicians, from altissimo and baffle to Werckmeister temperament.
A
- A440
- The standard reference pitch: the A above middle C tuned to 440 Hz (ISO 16). Many European orchestras tune slightly higher, to 442–443 Hz. More →
- Accidental
- A sharp (♯), flat (♭), natural (♮), double sharp (𝄪) or double flat (𝄫) placed before a note. It lasts until the next barline.
- Albert system
- A simple-system clarinet keywork descended from Iwan Müller's 13-key design; still loved in traditional jazz and klezmer.
- Alternate fingering
- A different combination of keys for the same note, used to make a passage smoother, change the tone colour or correct intonation.
- Altissimo
- The highest register of a woodwind. On the clarinet it begins at C♯6 (written); on the saxophone it means notes above the palm-key F/F♯. More →
- Arpeggio
- The notes of a chord played one after another — usually root, third, fifth and octave. More →
- Articulation
- How notes start and connect: tongued, slurred, staccato, legato, accented, etc.
B
- Baffle
- The inside roof of a single-reed mouthpiece just behind the tip. A high baffle brightens and focuses the sound. More →
- Barrel
- The short joint between the clarinet mouthpiece and upper joint. Its length (typically 64–67 mm on B♭) is a main tuning adjustment. More →
- Basset clarinet
- A clarinet extended down to written C, for which Mozart wrote his Concerto K. 622 and Quintet K. 581.
- Beats
- The slow wobble heard when two nearly identical pitches sound together. Tuning means slowing beats until they disappear. More →
- Bell
- The flared end of a wind instrument. On the clarinet it mostly affects the lowest notes (E3 and B4).
- Bis key
- A small saxophone key between the left index and middle keys giving an easy B♭. More →
- Bocal
- The curved metal tube on which a bassoon or English horn reed is mounted.
- Boehm system
- Theobald Boehm's 1847 flute mechanism with large tone holes and ring keys. The Boehm clarinet (Klosé and Buffet, 1839–43) borrowed its rings and axles. More →
- Bore
- The internal shape of the tube: cylindrical (clarinet, flute body) or conical (oboe, saxophone, bassoon). It determines which harmonics are present.
- Break (the)
- The transition on the clarinet between the throat B♭4 and the clarion B4, where almost every finger changes at once. More →
C
- Cent
- One hundredth of an equal-tempered semitone; 1200 cents make an octave. Most ears notice tuning differences of 5–10 cents. More →
- Chalumeau
- The clarinet's low register (E3–F♯4 written), named after the clarinet's single-reed ancestor. More →
- Chromatic scale
- A scale moving entirely in semitones — all twelve pitch classes. More →
- Circle of fifths
- The arrangement of the twelve keys by perfect fifths, showing how key signatures add sharps or flats one at a time. More →
- Circular breathing
- Breathing in through the nose while pushing air out with the cheeks, allowing an unbroken sound.
- Clarion
- The clarinet's middle register (B4–C6 written), reached with the register key. More →
- Clef
- The symbol at the start of a staff that fixes the pitch of the lines: treble (G), bass (F), alto and tenor (C).
- Concert pitch
- The actual sounding pitch, as opposed to the written pitch of a transposing instrument. Concert B♭ is a written C for B♭ clarinet or trumpet. More →
- Cross-fingering
- A fingering where an open hole is followed by closed holes below it (a 'fork'), used to make notes between the main fingerings.
- Cylindrical bore
- A tube of constant diameter. Closed at one end (clarinet) it favours odd harmonics and overblows a twelfth.
D
- Double reed
- Two blades of cane tied together that vibrate against each other — oboe, English horn, bassoon.
- Double tonguing
- Alternating 'tu' and 'ku' (or 'du-gu') syllables to tongue very fast passages.
- Drone
- A sustained pitch played under music or practice; ideal for hearing intonation. More →
E
- Embouchure
- The shaping of the lips, facial muscles and jaw around a mouthpiece or embouchure hole. More →
- Enharmonic
- Two names for the same pitch in equal temperament, e.g. F♯ and G♭.
- Equal temperament
- The tuning system that divides the octave into twelve identical semitones (ratio 2^(1/12)). Standard since the 19th century. More →
F
- Facing
- The curve where the reed leaves the mouthpiece table. Described by tip opening and facing length. More →
- Fork fingering
- See cross-fingering.
- Frequency
- The number of vibrations per second, in hertz (Hz). Doubling the frequency raises the pitch an octave. More →
- Fundamental
- The lowest frequency of a vibrating air column or string — the pitch we name.
G
- Gizmo key
- A flute foot-joint key that closes the low B key only, improving high C7 on B-foot flutes. More →
- Glissando
- A slide between two pitches. The opening of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue is the clarinet's most famous.
H
- Half-hole
- Partly uncovering a tone hole or using a vent plate to help a high note speak (oboe, bass clarinet).
- Harmonic series
- The set of frequencies that are whole-number multiples of a fundamental. Wind instruments overblow to these partials.
- Head joint
- The top section of the flute containing the embouchure hole; its cut largely determines tone.
- Hertz (Hz)
- Unit of frequency: cycles per second. More →
- Hornbostel–Sachs
- The standard scientific classification of instruments (1914) into idiophones, membranophones, chordophones, aerophones and electrophones. More →
I
- Intonation
- How in tune notes are, especially relative to other players or a reference. More →
J
- Just intonation
- Tuning by simple whole-number frequency ratios such as 3:2 and 5:4; beatless chords in one key. More →
K
- Key signature
- Sharps or flats placed after the clef that apply throughout the piece. More →
L
M
- Meantone
- A family of temperaments that narrow the fifths to make major thirds purer; quarter-comma meantone has pure thirds. More →
- Melodic minor
- A minor scale with raised sixth and seventh ascending, returning to natural minor descending. More →
- Metronome
- A device that clicks a steady beat at a set tempo in beats per minute (BPM). More →
- MIDI
- Musical Instrument Digital Interface — a protocol that numbers notes 0–127 (middle C = 60). More →
- Mouthpiece
- The part placed in or against the mouth. For single reeds its chamber, baffle and facing shape the sound. More →
- Multiphonic
- Two or more pitches produced at once on a monophonic instrument through special fingerings.
N
- Natural minor
- The minor scale built only from the notes of the relative major (Aeolian mode). More →
O
- Octave key
- The saxophone (and oboe) thumb key that opens a small vent to jump the octave. More →
- Oehler system
- The German clarinet system with extra keys and a darker sound, used mainly in Germany and Austria.
- Overblowing
- Using faster air or a vent to make an instrument sound a higher harmonic instead of the fundamental.
P
- Pad
- The leather, skin or synthetic disc in a key cup that seals a tone hole. More →
- Palm keys
- The saxophone's three left-hand side keys (D, E♭, F) for the top of the normal range. More →
- Partial
- Any single frequency component of a sound; overtones are the partials above the fundamental.
- Pitch class
- All notes with the same name regardless of octave (every C, every F♯…).
R
- Reed strength
- How stiff a reed is, usually numbered 1.5–5. Numbers are not consistent between brands. More →
- Register
- A segment of an instrument's range with its own fingering pattern and colour.
- Register key
- The clarinet thumb key that vents the tube so it sounds a twelfth higher. More →
- Relative key
- The major and minor keys that share a key signature (C major / A minor). More →
- Ring key
- A metal ring around a tone hole that closes another pad when the finger covers the hole.
S
- Scale degree
- A note's position in a scale: tonic (1), supertonic (2) … leading note (7).
- Scientific pitch notation
- Naming notes with letter and octave number, where middle C is C4 and A4 is 440 Hz. More →
- Scordatura
- Retuning a string instrument away from standard tuning for a special effect or key. More →
- Side keys
- Keys operated by the side of the hand: clarinet trill keys, saxophone side E, C and B♭.
- Single reed
- One reed vibrating against a mouthpiece — clarinets and saxophones.
- Sliver key
- A small clarinet key (left E♭/B♭ or right B/F♯) giving chromatic alternatives. More →
- Slur
- A curved line telling the player to connect notes without re-tonguing.
- Staccato
- Short, detached notes, marked with dots.
- Swab
- A cloth pulled through the instrument to remove moisture after playing. More →
T
- Temperament
- A system of slightly adjusting interval sizes so that many keys sound acceptable. More →
- Throat tones
- The clarinet's G4–B♭4, played with few fingers and therefore weaker and brighter. More →
- Tip opening
- The gap between reed tip and mouthpiece tip. Open facings suit softer reeds; close facings harder reeds. More →
- Tone hole
- A hole in the tube that, when opened, effectively shortens the vibrating air column.
- Tonguing
- Starting notes by releasing the tongue from the reed or behind the teeth.
- Transposing instrument
- An instrument whose written notes differ from the sounding notes by a fixed interval (B♭ clarinet, F horn, E♭ alto sax). More →
- Trill
- Rapid alternation between two adjacent notes.
- Tuning (string)
- The set of open-string pitches of a string instrument. More →
- Twelfth
- An octave plus a perfect fifth (19 semitones) — the clarinet's overblowing interval.
V
- Vibrato
- A regular, slight fluctuation of pitch and/or volume that adds warmth.
- Voicing
- The shape of the tongue and throat inside the mouth, which affects pitch, response and tone. More →
W
É
- Étude
- A study piece written to develop a specific technique. More →