Musical Term		Abbreviation	English	Other information and examples of usage
a			at; to; by; for; in	eg: a tempo = in time (back to the previous speed).
a capella			unaccompanied	usually in choral music
a piacere			at pleasure	The performer is not bound to follow the given rhythm exactly.
accelerando		(accel.)	gradually getting faster	An increase in the speed of the music.
accento			accented; emphasised
ad libitum		(ad lib.)	at choice; freely	1) A passage may be performed freely. 2) An instrument in a score may be omitted.
adagietto			rather slow	Usually a little faster than adagio
adagio			slowly	Often indicates a speed somewhere between andante and largo
affabile			friendly
affettuoso			tenderly
affrettando			hurrying
agitato			agitated; restless
al; alla			in the manner of	eg: alla marcia = in the style of a march
alla breve			with a minim beat
allargando			broadening
allegretto			fairly quick	Faster than Andante and usually slower than Allegro
allegro			fast
alt			high	"in alt" is used in volcal music to refer to notes in the octave above the treble stave.
amabile			amiable; pleasant
amore			love
andante			walking speed	Moderately slow
andantino			like walking speed	This can mean either slightly slower or slightly faster than andante. It is ambiguous.
anima			soul; spirit	eg: con anima = with spirit
animando			becoming more lively
animato			animated; lively
appassionato			with passion
arco			with the bow	An instruction to string players to use the bow.
arioso			like an aria	Play in the style of an aria (singing)
assai			very	eg: allegro assai = very fast
attacca			go straight on	Indicates an immediate move to the next section of music.
ben			well
bis			twice	Indicates the repetition of a short passage.
bravura			skill; brilliance
brio			vigour	eg: con brio = with vigour
calando			getting softer; dying away	Usually includes slowing down
cantabile			in a singing style
cantando			singing
capriccioso			in a whimsical or fanciful style
col; colla; colle			with	eg: colla voce = with the voice
come			as; similar to	eg: come prima = as before
comodo			convenient	eg: tempo comodo = at a comfortable speed
con			with	eg: con moto = with movement
crescendo		(cresc.)	gradually getting louder
da capo		(D.C.)	from the beginning	An instruction to repeat the misc from the beginning.
dal segno		(D.S.)	from the sign	An instruction to repeat the misc from the sign.
deciso			with determination
decrescendo		(decresc.)	gradually getting softer
delicato			delicate
diminuendo		(dim.)	gradually getting softer
dolce			sweetly	eg: dolcissimo = as sweet as possible
dolente			sad; mournful
dolore			grief	eg: doloroso = sorrowful
doloroso			sorrowful
doppio movimento			twice as fast
e; ed			and
energico			energetic
espressivo		(espr.)	expressive
estinto			as soft as possible
facile			easy
felice			happy
fermata			pause
feroce			fierce
fine			the end	Often used in conjunction with "da capo" or "dal segno" to indicate where to end the piece after repeating. eg: al fine = to the end
flessibile			flexible
forte		(f)	loud; strong
fortepiano		(fp)	loud then immediately soft
fortissimo		(ff)	very loud
forza			force	eg: forzando (fz) = strongly accented
fretta			haste
fuoco			fire
furioso			furious
giocoso			playful; humerous
giojoso			joyful; merry
giusto			proper; exact
grandioso			grandly
grave			very slow; solemn
grazioso			graceful
impetuoso			impetuous
incalzando			getting quicker
inquieto			restless
in relievo			prominent	A direction to make the melody stand out.
lacrimoso			sad
largamente			broadly
larghetto			rather slow	Slightly faster than largo.
largo			rather slow; stately
legato			smoothly	Indicates no break between notes.
leggiero			light; nimble
lento			slow
liberamente			freely
l'istesso			the same	eg: l'istesso tempo = at the same speed
loco			at the normal pitch	Used to cancel an 8va direction. Also used to confirm that 8va is not intended.
lugubre			mournful
lunga			long	eg: lunga pausa = long pause
lusigando			coaxing
ma			but	eg: allegro ma non troppo = quick but not too quick
maestoso			majestic
mancando			fading away
marcato		(marc.)	emphatic; accented
marziale			in a military style
meno			less	eg: meno forte = less loud
mesto			sad
mezzoforte		(mf)	moderately loud
mezzopiano		(mp)	moderately soft
misterioso			mysterious
misura			measure	eg: alla misura = in strict time; senza misura = in free time
moderato			moderate speed	eg: allegro moderato = moderately fast.
molto			very; much	eg: allegro molto = very fast
morendo			dying away
mosso			movement
moto			movement
niente			nothing
nobilmente			nobly
non			not
nuovo			new	e.g. di nuovo = again
obbligato			obligatory	Indicates that an instrument has a special role and is essential.
ossia			or; alternatively	Often used to indicate a simpler version of a difficult passage.
ostinato			persistent	Generally refers to a persistently repeated rhythmic or melodic figure.
parlando			speaking	A direction for a singer to sing in a conversational style.
patetico			with deep feeling
pausa			pause
per			by; for; to
perdendosi			dying away
pesante			heavy
piacevole			pleasant
piangevole			plaintive
pianissimo		(pp)	very soft
piano		(p)	soft
piť			more	e.g. piť forte = louder
pizzicato			plucked	An instruction to string players to pluck the strings, rather than bow them.
placido			calm; peaceful
pochettino		(poch.)	rather little
poco			a little	e.g. poco a poco = little by little
possible			possible	e.g. presto possible = as fast as possible
precipitando			rushing; headlong
presto			very fast
prima			first	(Prima; Primo) e.g. prima volta = first time; tempo primo = revert to the speed at the beginning of the piece of music
quasi			as if; resembling	e.g. quasi recitativo = like a recitative
rallentando		(rall.)	gradually getting slower
rigoroso			strict
rinforzando		(rf; rfz)	reinforcing
risoluto			bold; strong
ritardando		(rit.)	gradually getting slower
ritenuto		(rit.)	held back
ritmico			rhythmically
rubato			with some freedom of time
scherzando			playful; joking	Also scherzoso.
scherzo			joke; jest	A movement in a piece, generally light and humerous in nature.
seconda			second	(Seconda; secondo)
semplice			simple; plain
sempre			always	e.g. sempre staccato = always detached
senza			without	e.g. senza misura = freely (not in time)
segue			go straight on
sforzando		(sf; sfz)	forced; accented
simile		(sim.)	in the same way
slargando			getting slower
slancio			enthusiasm
smorzando		(smorz.)	dying away	Both tone and speed
soave			gentle; smooth
solenne			solemn; grave
sonoro			resonant; with rich tone
sopra			above
sospirando			sighing
sostenuto			sustained
sotto			below	eg: sotto voce = in an undertone
spirito			spirited
spiritoso			spirited
staccato			detached
strepitoso			noisy; boisterous
stretto			quickening the speed	Also means overlapping entries of a fugue subject.
stringendo			gradually getting faster
subito			suddenly
tacet			silent	A direction that a particular part has nothing to play in a section of music.
tanto			so much
tempo			speed	eg: a tempo = return to the previous speed, after a slowing down or speeding up.
teneramente			tenderly
tenuto			held
tosto			swift; rapid
tranquillo			calm
trionfale			triumphant
triste			sad; sorrowful
troppo			too much	eg: allegro ma non troppo = fast, but not too fast.
tutti			all; everyone
veloce			swift
vigoroso			vigorous; strong
vivace			lively
vivo			lively
voce			voice
volante			flying; fast
volta			time	e.g. prima volta = first time
volti subito		(V.S.)	turn the page at once