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MB abbreviation of 'Bachelor of Music', 'Manitoba' (Canada) Mbaire (Uganda) a large xylophone from Busoga. It is comprised of twenty large keys arranged in a pentatonic scale and was played by six people M'bal (Senegal) a shorter version of the n'der drum of the Wolof Mbalax modernised Senegalese (Wolof) percussion music, characterized by a combination of Afro-Cuban rhythms, Wolof drumming and American pop music Mbalax Mbaqanga or 'township jive', a popular dance music style from the South African townships, its roots dating back to the 1930s, when Zulu and Sotho music were combined with African-American styles. It became very popular in the 1960s and 1970s Mbaqanga Mbaqanga M-Base (Macro-Basic Array of Structured Extemporization) a New York-based music movement that pioneered a a concept of how to create modern music. The movement reached its peak in the mid-to-late-80s and early 90s. The word was applied also to the collective of musicians, poets and dancers who espoused the M-base philosophy M-Base M-Base MBE abbreviation of 'Member of the Order of the British Empire' Mbela (Central African Republic) a musical bow composed of an arched branch and a string cut from a vine. The string is stretched between the two ends of the branch and held in front of the half-open mouth. When struck with a thin stick, the string produces a fairly faint single note to bring out another note, the player then touches it with a blade. The mouth cavity, acting as a natural resonator of varying shape and volume, amplifies and modulates the tones Mbende a celebration dance, coming from the Eastern part of Zimbabwe, with 'talking drum' sounds, performed mostly when a daughter of a chief is about to be wedded. The dance itself is a 'sexual dance'; a man and a woman are paired to suggest the daughter's impending experiences. The dance is to aid movement beyond the age of innocence by emphasizing commitment to new ways of doing things Popular African Traditional Dances from which this information has been taken Mbila plural form timbila, an African xylophone Xylophone (mbila) and one mallet, Chopi people, Mozambique, 19th century Mbira also known as sanza, sansa, lukembe, kalimbe or thumb piano, the mbira is a unique kind of tuned percussion instrument, found primarily in the Shona culture of Zimbabwe, on which one produces sound by plucking thin strips or tongues of metal, wood or cane with the thumbs and fingers. The strips are attached to a gourd resonator or wooden box, often with sound holes and, sometimes, jingles or beads are added to the keys to create a rich, buzzing tone. The pitch of each key may be altered by fixing wax to its free end, or by increasing or decreasing its length Mbira Akwaaba/the Mbira Lamellaphone (mbira), possibly Shona people, Botswana, 1st half of 20th century Mbira Tunings from Zimbabwe Mbira dzavadzimu (Shona, literally 'voice of the ancestors') a musical instrument that has been played by the Shona people of Zimbabwe for thousands of years. The mbira dzavadzimu is frequently played at religious ceremonies and social gatherings Mbira dzavadzimu Mbuat a free-reed mouth organ of the Meo (Hmong) people of Vietnam Mbuat Mbube (literally 'lion') an a cappella choral singing style of South African Zulus, featuring call and response patterns, close-knit harmonies and syncopation Mbumba (Malawi) songs that were used to praise the leader of the country, and which were regularly sung at meetings and political events, in which he appeared. These songs were then called nyimbo za mbumba (= the songs of mbumba). But the songs themselves came from many different performance groups; for example there were songs that had been borrowed from mbotosyg, a genre of song from northern Malawi, or from chintali, a dance with songs by women, men playing drums, from southern Malawi, etc. All these sources were borrowed and integrated Into the mbumba style, with their original words replaced by words of praise for the achievments of the president. From the moment the name of the president appeared in those songs, they were no longer referred to the original genres, but called mbumba songs. With the change of government in Malawi, in 1994, the genre nyimbo za mbumba has disappeared from the public; but recordings are still available on cassettes The popular dance of mbumba in the 1980s from which this extract has been taken M'bung m'bung bal (Senegal) or m'bung m'bung tungoné, a shorter bass version of the n'der, used to play the accompanying rhythm in a sabar drum set M'bung m'bung tungoné see m'bung m'bung bal MC also spelled "emcee", a rapper who performs for crowds MCA, M.C.A. abbreviation of 'Master of Creative Arts' MCh abbreviation of Männerchor (German: men's choir - choeur d'hommes (French)) M-CL abbreviation of 'Mechanical-Copyright Licenses Co., a body formed in England in 1910 to administer mechanical rights. It merged with MCPS in 1924 MCPS abbreviation of 'Mechanical Copyright Protection Society Ltd., formed in 1924, to administer mechanical rights. It merged with M-CL in 1924 M.D., m.d. abbreviation of main droite (French), mano destra or mano dritta (Italian) (right hand on the piano) MD MD-numbers refer to the standard MacDonald Verzeichnis of the Beatles' songs Md abbreviation of Mandoline (German: mandolin - mandoline French)) Me the lowered third degree of a major scale; in 'fixed do' solfeggio, me is always the note 'E-flat' ¿me acompañas? (Spanish) will you come with me? Mea culpa (Latin, literally 'through my fault') originally part of the Confession of the Mass, now used more generally to admit responsibility for some blunder Mead a wine made from fermented honey Mead hall a structure built by an Anglo-Saxon lord (hlaford or cyning) as a social centre for his immediate community, especially his thegns and warriors me agarré el dedo en ... (Spanish) I caught my finger in ... (something) me agradaría mucho verlos allí (Spanish) I would be very pleased to see you there me alegra que me haga esa pregunta (Spanish) I'm glad you asked that me alegra saberlo (Spanish) I'm pleased to hear it me alegro (Spanish) I'm glad (to hear that) me alegro de verte it's good to see you (Spanish) it's nice to see you me alegro de que todo haya salido bien (Spanish) I'm glad that, I am very pleased that me alegro mucho por ti (Spanish) I'm really happy for you Mea maxima culpa (Latin, literally 'through my very own fault') originally part of the Confession of the Mass, now used more generally to admit responsibility for some blunder Mean obsolete term for the middle part (usually the tenor) or a middle string Meane in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century England, the middle voice of a composition, between the treble and tenor the middle voice of a three voice keyboard composition me anestesiaron (Spanish) they gave me an anesthetic Meantone scale or mean-tone scale, the most common form of meantone temperament tunes all the major thirds to the just ratio of 5:4 (so, for instance, if A is tuned to 440 Hz, C#' is tuned to 550 Hz). This is achieved by tuning the perfect fifth a quarter of a syntonic comma flatter than the just ratio of 3:2. It is this that gives the system its name of quarter-comma meantone or 1/4-comma meantone. Another way of describing quarter comma meantone is to notice that the Pythagorean 3-limit scale has been tempered to fit the 5-limit meantone scale by removing the fourth root of the Pythagorean comma from each interval in a chain of four fifths. So in this case 'meantone' is really 'quarter-comma meantone', i.e. (81/80)(1/4) Meantone Scale - a basic introduction Meantone temperament - a technical article Meantone - a more advanced discussion Meantone temperament see 'meantone scale' me armé una confusión (Spanish) I got into a mess (colloquial) me armé un lío (Spanish) I got into a mess (colloquial) Measurable music mensurable music Measure misura (Italian), Takt (German), mesure (French) in American usage, what in the UK we call a bar, the portion of music lying between two consecutive bar-lines (in American usage, bars). The pural, i.e. 'measures', is sometimes abbreviated mm. (entry amended by Susan Mielke) time, the rhythmical division of the portion of music between two consecutive bar-lines English term of the Renaissance and Baroque eras signifying a group of dance steps that could be performed to one strain of dance music Measured music music comprised of durations with proportional values, as for example in cantus mensuratu (measured chant) and music marked tempo giusto Measured performance a descriptive term suggesting a performance that is neither too fast nor too slow, although it might also suggest a performance that is considered 'safe', that is, lacking in verve or vigour the term is also used to describe music that observes the note lengths indicated by the proportional notation (for example, cantus mensuratu), as opposed to music that is 'unmeasured', for example, plainchant Measure motive a motive whose accent coincides with the first beat of the bar (or measure) Measure note the note indicated by the lower number in the standard time signature, thus for the time signature 3/4 the measure note is the crotchet (quarter note), and a bar (or measure) comprises 3 crotchets Measure rest the rest that is equivalent to the note indicated by the lower number in the standard time signature, thus for the time signature 3/4 the measure note is the crotchet (quarter note), therefore the measure rest is a crotchet rest (quarter rest) me aventuraría a decir que ... (Spanish) I would go so far as to say that ... me avergüenza decírselo (Spanish) I'm embarrassed to tell him Mécanique (French f.) action Mécanisme des clefs (French m.) key work, meccanismo delle chiavi (Italian m.) Klappenmechanik (German f.), mecanismo de llaves (Spanish m.) Mécanisme du piston (French m.) valve (mechanism found on some brass instruments), Ventilmaschine (German f.), mecanismo del pistón (Spanish m.) Mecanismo de llaves (Spanish m.) key work, key mechanism, meccanismo delle chiavi (Italian m.) Klappenmechanik (German f.), m&eacuate;canisme des clefs (French m.) Mecanismo del pistón (Spanish m.) valve (mechanism found on some brass instruments), macchina (Italian f.), Ventilmaschine (German f.), mécanisme du piston (French m.) Meccanica (Italian f.) process, action, mechanism. mechanics (science) Meccanica analitica (Italian f.) analytical mechanics Meccanica applicata (Italian f.) applied mechanics Meccanica celeste (Italian f.) celestial mechanics Meccanica classica (Italian f.) classical mechanics Meccanica dei liquidi (Italian f.) fluid mechanics Meccanica dei quanti (Italian f.) quantum mechanics Meccanica ondulatoria (Italian f.) wave mechanics Meccanica quantistica (Italian f.) quantum mechanics Meccanica teorica (Italian f.) theoretical mechanics Meccanismo (Italian m.) mechanism Meccanismo delle chiavi (Italian m.) key work, key mechanism, Klappenmechanik (German f.), m&eacuate;canisme des clefs (French m.), mecanismo de llaves (Spanish m.) Meccanismo di controllo (Italian m.) control mechanism Mecenate (Italian m.) patron Mécène (French m.) patron méchanceté (French) spitefulness, malicious ill-will Mechanical action on an organ, the keys are connected to trackers which eventually connect to the valves that control the movement of air from the wind chest into the pipe. By pressing the key, the player is opening the valve in the wind chest. In a mechanical action, there is one valve for each note on the keyboard. So, if the organ has 10 stops, there is one valve for all ten pipes which correspond to that note on the keyboard Mechanical gusli see gusli Mechanical instrument a musical instrument that is operated mechanically without a human performer, for example, a music box Mechanical organ a term that is applied to a large family of instruments where the music to be played is provided via a cylinder on which the individual notes have been 'pegged-out'. The earliest members included belly organs (strapped around the waists of travelling musicians who used a crank to turn the cylinder), peg organs (belly organs which when played were supported by a single leg), bird-organs, street-organs, church barrel-organs (that played chorales, etc.), dance organs, band organs, theatre organs and fairground organs. The majority of these had pipes but a variant of the smaller instruments was produced employing reeds rather than pipes called the Meloton. A term commonly used to cover this family is 'barrel-organ' although from the invention by Anselme Gavioli in 1892 of the pneumatic reader, the 'barrel' or cylinder was gradually replaced and these new instruments were called book-organs. Organs that are bigger are usually 'cranked' not manually, but with a motor. These larger instruments are usually fairground organs, band organs, carousel organs, calliopes or orchestrions Theatre Pipe Organ Website Organ Builders Mechanical paper paper made from wood that is ground down into a pulp. This type of fibre forms weak bonds and is used in paper made for temporary use such as newsprint. It is high in lignin, a substance within the cellulose, that attracts mould and insects, and raises the paper's acid content Mechanik (German f.) action (on a piano) Mechanikbogen (German m.) harmonic curve (pertaining to the shape of the bridge on a stringed keyboard instrument) Mécanique (French f.) action (on a piano) Mécanique à action directe (French f.) upright action (on a piano) Mécanique à double échappement (French f.) double-escapement action (on a piano) Mécanique à lame (French f.) underdampers (on a piano) Mécanique SMR SEILER (French f.) SEILER's Super Magnet Repetition Action (on a piano) mechanische Piano (Dutch) player piano mechanische Musik (German f.) mechanical music mechanisches Instrument (German n.) mechanical instrument Mechanism deriving from the French mécanisme, meaning 'technical skill' or 'manual dexterity' that portion of an instrument which connects the act of the performer with the sound producing medium Mechanisme (Dutch) action Mechanoreceptors sensory organs in the body that respond to mechanical stimulation, such as pressure or touch méchant (m.), méchante (f.) (French) spiteful, malicious, ill-natured Mèche (French f.) that part of the bow consisting of the bowhair MECOLICO abbreviation of 'Mechanical-Copyright Licenses Co.', found for many years on stamps affixed to records to show that royalties had been paid me consta que (Spanish) I'm sure that MEd abbreviation of 'Master of Education' me da asco el ajo (Spanish) I can't stand garlic Meddelande (Swedish) communication Meddelelser (Norwegian) proceedings Mededeling (Dutch) communication Medeltonstemperatur (Swedish) meantone temperament medesimo (Italian) the same medesimo moto (Italian) the same time medesimo movimento (Italian) the same speed medesimo tempo (Italian) the same pace Medewerker (Dutch) contributor, collaborator Medewerking (Dutch) collaboration Media (s.), Mediae (pl.) (Latin) in linguistics, one of the voiced stops, b, d, g, considered as intermediates between the voiceless stops, tenuis, and the aspirates media aspirata (Latin) the aspirated voiced stops bh, dh gh found in Sanskrit and the Dravidian languages Media C (Spanish f.) the note 'middle C' Mediaeval or 'mediæval', see 'medieval' Medial cadence see 'cadence (harmonic)' Medial sound (in phonetics) within a word or syllable, neither initial nor final, as the t, a, and n in stand Médiane (French f.) median (statistics), medial sound (linguistics), mid-vowel (linguistics) medianamente (Spanish) fairly medianamente débil (Spanish) fairly weak medianamente forte (Spanish) fairly strong Mediant (English, Danish, Swedish, Dutch from the Latin) médiante (French), mediante (Italian), modale (Italian), caratteristica (Italian), Mediante (German), mediante (Spanish), the third degree of the scale, called mediant because it is midway between the first degree of the scale (the tonic) and the fifth degree of the scale (the dominant) mediant also refers to a relationship between musical keys. For example, relative to the key of C minor, the key of E flat major is the mediant, and often serves as a mid-way point between I and V (hence the name). Tonicization or modulation to the mediant is quite common in pieces written in the minor mode, and usually serves as the second theme group in sonata forms, since it is very easy to tonicize III in the minor (for there is no need to use alternate notes). Tonicization of III in the major is quite rare in classical harmony, at least when compared with, for example, modulation to the V in the major, but mediant tonicization in the major is an important feature of late romantic music Mediant from which some of this material has been taken Mediante (German f., Italian f., Spanish f.) mediant Médiante (French f.) mediant Mediant relationship two chords whose roots are the interval of a third apart are said to be in mediant relationship one with the other Mediant seventh chord a seventh chord built on the third degree of the scale, III Media pausa (Spanish f.) also silencio de blanca or pausa de blanca, minim rest, half rest, pausa di minima (Italian), halbe Pause (German), demi-pause (French) Media player a piece of application software for playing back multimedia files. Most media players support an array of media formats, including both audio and video files Media player from which this extract has been taken médiat (m.), médiate (f.) (French) mediate Mediate in-between, being neither at the beginning nor at the end in a series, occupy an intermediate or middle position or form a connecting link or stage between two others, acting through or dependent on an intervening agency to intercede, to act between parties with a view to reconciling differences Mediate inference (in logic) an inference is said to be mediate when at least two other propositions are required in order to advance a third proposition, while it is said to be immediate when a proposition is inferred from a single other proposition Médiateur (m.), Médiatrice (f.) (French) mediator, arbitrator, Ombudsman (UK Parliamentary Commissioner) médiateur (m.), médiatrice (f.) (French) mediating, arbitrating Mediatio (Latin, literally 'mediation') a semi- or subordinate cadence that occurs midway through a verse in a psalm tone Médiation (French f.) mediation, arbitration, mediate inference médiatique (French) media Médiatisation (French f.) mediatisation, promotion through the media (on TV, etc.) médiatiser (French) to mediatise, to promote through the media (on TV, etc.) Médiator (French m.) pick, plectrum Médiatrice (French f.) median (goemetry) Media Ventures a film music company ran by Hans Zimmer and Jay Rifkin, which was known for housing yonug composers and pushing such collaborations between them as conducting, writing additional music, or even co-composing with Zimmer himself Media Ventures from which this extract has been taken media voz (Spanish) mezza voce Medicina (Spanish f.) medicine Medicina alopática (Spanish f.) allopatic medicine, a derogatory term coined by alternative medicine practioners to describe what most people call 'conventional' (i.e. non-alternative) medicine the term 'allopathic' is rarely used by practioners of conventional medicine who indeed might not use the descriptor 'conventional' either. More recently, the terms 'evidence-based' and 'science-based' have been applied in place of 'conventional'. The mechanisms advanced for the way that alternative medicines (of which there are a great many) operate are in general not supported by any current understanding of human physiology, nor is their efficacy demonstrable using science-based evidence of outcome. Indeed, where they can be shown to produce any effect, that appears to be only what might be expected from the well-understood 'placebo-effect' Medicina alternativa (Spanish f.) alternative medicine Medicina antiqua (Spanish f.) ancient medicine (usually that of the ancient Greeks and Romans) Medicina bucal (Spanish f.) oral medicine Medicina clínica (Spanish f.) clinical medicine Medicina comunitaria (Spanish f.) community medicine Medicina convencional (Spanish f.) conventional medicine(now termed 'science-based medicine') Medicina de urgencias (Spanish f.) emergency medicine Medicina familiar (Spanish f.) family medicine Medicina fetal (Spanish f.) foetal medicine, fetal medicine Medicina general (Spanish f.) general practice Medicina geriátrica (Spanish f.) geriatric medicine Medicina holistica (Spanish f.) holistic medicine Medicina obstétrica (Spanish f.) obstetric medicine Medicina preventiva (Spanish f.) preventative medicine Medicina privada (Spanish f.) private medicine Medicina pública (Spanish f.) public medicine Medicina respiratoria (Spanish f.) respiratory medicine Medicina tropical (Spanish f.) tropical medicine Medicina veterinaria (Spanish f.) veterinary medicine (medicine as applied to non-human animals) Medico interno (Italian m.) house surgeon, house physician Medieval (from Latin medium aevum, 'the Middle Age' or 'the in-between age') pertaining to the Middle Ages, which for music is generally taken to be the period c.500-1430. While there are no universally accepted demarcations, it is common in older European histories to divide the medieval period into an early period of 'the Dark Ages' and a later period of 'the High Middle Ages'. On the other hand, linguists divide the medieval period in England into the Anglo-Saxon period (about 450-1066) and the Middle English period (about 1066-1450). Some scholars prefer to mark the years 1100-1350 as the "Anglo-Norman" period, since most courtly literature in England was written in Norman-French rather than English. Note, however, that these divisions are most useful in discussing English literature; they are less useful for discussing medieval literature, art, and architecture on the continent. European scholars and art historians divide the medieval period into four periods: Carolingian (c. 750-900), Ottonian (c. 900-1056), Romanesque (c. 1057-1150), and Gothic (1150-1475). The early medieval centuries (often misleadingly called 'the Dark Ages') are marked by the disintegration of classical Greco-Roman culture and the Volkerwanderung of Germanic tribes into western Europe, followed by gradual conversions to Christianity. Its later stages (often called 'the High Middle Ages') are marked by innovative technology, economic growth, and original theology and philosophy Literary Terms and Definitions from which some of this material has been taken Medieval dance the Middle Ages are a period for which there are no known extant choreographies. There is, however, ample music that clearly is for dance. Several researchers and practitioners have made credible new choreographies to suit this music The Early Dance Circle from which this extract has been taken Medieval estates satire a medieval genre common among French poets in which the speaker lists various occupations among the three estates of feudalism (nobles, peasants, and clergy) and depicts them in a manner that shows how short they fall from the ideal of that occupation. In the late medieval period, the genre expanded to discuss the failings of bourgeois individuals as well Literary Terms and Definitions from which this extract has been taken Medievalism in western Europe, a term linked with feudalism in government, guildhouses in economics, monasticism and Catholicism in religion, and castles and knights in chivalrous military custom Medieval music the term 'Medieval music' encompasses European music written during the Middle Ages. This era begins with the fall of the Roman Empire (476AD) and ends in approximately the middle of the fifteenth century. Establishing the end of the Medieval era and the beginning of the Renaissance is admittedly arbitrary Medieval from which this short extract has been taken Medieval & Renaissance Music: A Brief Survey Introduction to Medieval Music Medieval Music Database Medieval Music Medieval music history Medieval Music History Medieval music of Cyprus Medieval Music of Cyprus Medieval rock a musical genre derived from folk rock. While medieval rock usually mixes traditional rock instruments (e.g. electrical guitars) with instruments commonly found in celtic folk music (e.g. bagpipes), it often also uses more classical instruments, such as harps or violins. Some bands use medieval instruments exclusively, other bands even use synthesizers Medieval rock from which this extract has been taken Medieval romance see 'romance, medieval' me dijo sin ambages que no quería volver a verme (Spanish) he told me straight out that he didn't want to see me again Medio (Spanish m.) middle Medio ambiente (Spanish m.) environment medio fuerte (Spanish) mf, mezzo forte Medio Oriente, el (Spanish m.) or el Oriente Medio (Spanish m.), the Middle East (geographic region) Medio registro (Spanish f.) a term applied to organs, which refers to a stop which functions over only half of the keyboard médios (Portuguese) middle medio suave (Spanish) mp, mezzo piano medio tono (Spanish) semitone, half-step Medism a specific form of hypnotism that mixes hypnosis and meditation Meditation a thoughtful or contemplative essay, sermon, discussion, or treatise Medium one of the standard jazz tempos, neither 'up' (quicker) nor 'ballad' (slower) Médium (French m.) the middle register (of an instrument's range) in French, the three parts of an instrument's range are l'aigu, le médium and le grave médium (French) middle Medium (s.), Media (pl.) any liquid with which pigments are mixed to render them suitable for painting with a channel of communication, a system for the dissemination of information, etc. Medium (s.), Medien (pl.) (German n.) any liquid with which pigments are mixed to render them suitable for painting with a channel of communication, a system for the dissemination of information, etc. Medius (Latin) the name of one of the accentus ecclesiastici Medlar a small, brown, applelike fruit, hard and bitter when ripe and eaten only when partly decayed Medlem (Danish, Norwegian, Swedish) member Medley (English, German n.) a potpourri of melodies taken from other compositions and strung together. Since the end of the nineteenth century some distinction has been made between potpourri and 'medley', the latter usually denoting pieces that are more closely connected me duele un montón (Spanish) it hurts a lot Meend a term from Hindustani classical music, a glissando where the player glides from one note to another at the same time faintly sounding the intermediate notes me encuentro algo cansado (Spanish) I'm feeling rather tired Meerabai Rajput princess of the 16th century A.D., who was a great devotee of Sri Krishna and who composed and sang innumerable songs in the praise of Sri Krishna which have since become popular all over India Meerduidigheid (Dutch) ambiguity Meerenge (German f.) a sound Meerhorn (German n.) tromba marina meermaats Rust (Dutch) multibar rest Meerschaum (German m., from Persian) or écume de mer (French), hydrous silicate of magnesium, a soft white clay used for the manufacture of pipes and cigarette holders Meerstemmig (Dutch) arrangement for several voices Meerstemmiger Gesang (German m.) a glee or part-song Meerstemmig lied (Dutch) part-song meerstimmig (German) in many or several parts Meertrompete (German f.) tromba marina me estaba quedando atrás (Spanish) I was getting left behind Megáfono (Spanish m.) bullhorn, loudhailer, megaphone, megafono (Italian m.), Megaphon (German n.), porte-voix (French), mégaphone (French m.) Megalomania (Greek) an illusion of greatness, the mistaken belief that one is an important person, a mania of surrounding oneself with magnificent objects and objects of large size Megaphon (German n.) bullhorn, loudhailer, megaphone, megafono (Italian m.), porte-voix (French), mégaphone (French m.), megáfono (Spanish m.) Mégaphone (French m.) or porte-voix, bullhorn, loudhailer, megaphone, megafono (Italian m.), Megaphon (German n.), porte-voix (French), megáfono (Spanish m.) Megaplex a movie theatre or cinema complex with more than 16 screens Megaron (s.), Megara (pl.) (Greek) the oldest form of Greek house, consisting of a single rectangular room with an anteroom me gusta un montón (Spanish) I like her a lot, I like him a lot, I like it a lot mehr (German) more, many mehr als die Summe seiner Teile (German) more than the sum of its parts mehrchörig (German) polychoral Mehrchörigkeit (German f.) antiphony mehrere (German) several mehrfach (German) multiple, manifold mehrfach bestezt (German) doubled by several players mehrfache Intervalle (German n. pl.) compound intervals mehrfacher Kanon (German m.) a canon with more than two subjects mehrfache Stimme (German f.) an organ stop with several sets of pipes mehr oder minder (German) more or less mehrsätzig (German) with several movements Mehrspurverfahren (German n.) multi-track recording mehrstimmig (German) multivoice, polyphonic, in several parts, concerted (music) (German) for several voices, di piu voci (Italian), à plusieurs voix (French), a varias voces (Spanish) mehrstimmige Gesang (German m.) partsinging mehrstimmige Lied (German n.) a part-song Mehrstimmigkeit (German f.) polyphony, plurivocality mehrtaktige Pause (German f.) multibar rest mehrteilig (German) in several parts Mehter the Ottoman form of military band, it contained wind instruments such as the zurna (similar to the oboe), the boru (bugle), the kurrenay and the mehter whistle. It also contained percussion instruments such as the kös (the large drum), the nakkare (a small kettledrum), the zil (cymbals) and the çevgan. The number of instruments in each 'section' was the same, which determined the total number of instruments used. For example, the largest and most important, the Sultan's mehter or Tabl ü alem-i hassa, consisted of nine of each instrument. In later periods, the number of instruments could be as high as 12 or even 16. As well as the sultan's mehter band, the grand vizier (equivalent to the prime minister), ordinary viziers (equivalent to cabinet minister rank), the defterdar (head of the Treasury) and the reisü'l küttab (in charge of the state's foreign relations) would also have their own, and other bands were to be foundd in various provinces and castles. The structure and organisation of the mehter influenced the make-up of European military bands Meia see meio Meia ponta (Portuguese) demi pointe (French) Mei, Girolamo (1519-1594) an Italian historian and humanist, famous in music history for providing the intellectual impetus to the Florentine Camerata, which attempted to revive ancient Greek music drama. He was born Florence, and died in Rome. Mei was the first European after Boethius to do a detailed study of ancient Greek music theory. He compiled his findings in a major treatise, De modis musicis antiquorum (not formally published, but written 1568 to 1573) Girolamo Mei from which this information has been taken Meihua dagu (China) originated in Beijing and popular in North China, the performer tells stories while beating a drum, accompanied by two or three people who play three-stringed instruments, the pipa, and the sihu dagu and gushu are terms that denote the same category of qu under the heading of quyi. They consist chiefly of jingyun dagu, xihe dagu and meihua dagu Dagu and Gushu from which this information has been taken (le) meilleur des deux (French) (the) better of the two meilleur marché (French) cheaper meilleurs voeux (French) best wishes me importa un bledo (Spanish) I couldn't care less meine ganze Barschaft (German) all I have on me, all I had on me Meinungsumfrage (German f.) or Umfrage (German f.), opinion poll Meio (m.), Meia (f.) (Portuguese) half, demi (French), demie (French) Meio da sala (Portuguese) or centro, the centre of a ballet studio used for exercises and work not requiring the barre Meiosis understatement, the opposite of exaggeration Meio-tom (Portuguese) or semitom, semitone, half tone Meiosis (Greek) in linguistics, a figure of speech in which emphasis is achieved by deliberate understatement, one form of which is termed litotes Meiosis Meisenbach process the first commercial lithographic process used to reproduce photographs by employing halftones. George Meisenbach of Munich and Karel Klietsch of Vienna copyrighted this method in 1883 Meister (German m.) master, teacher Meisterfuge (German f.) synonymous with fuga ricercata Meistergesang (German m.) a songwriting and performance tradition found in the Germany of the Middle Ages and early Renaissance Meisterlieder (German n. pl.) the principal songs of the Meistersinger, featuring melismatic decoration (called Blumen), usually of sacred verse, the early examples, particularly, following closely the Minnelied Bar form - two identical phrases (Stollen) coupled to a contrasting concluding phrase (Abgesang) Meistersänger (German m., literally 'master singer') a guild (Zünfte) of German amateur musicians of the Medieval and Renaissance (active from the late thirteenth to the seventeenth century) who saw themselves as heirs to an earlier aristocratic Minnesinger tradition then in decline, and who relied on the guild for their professional status, which was maintained by adherence to strict rules (set down in the Tablatur). The most important guild was based at Nuremberg, and its most famous member was Hans Sachs (1494-1576), the shoemaker whose has left us more than 6000 works The Meistersingers mejorado (Spanish) improved Mejoranera (Panama) similar to a guitar but slightly smaller and with a shorter neck, this instrument, made of cedar, has five strings which were originally made of the dry fibres of Bejuco, horse hair, gut, and now nylon. It is used to accompany singers and trovadores vernaculares in songs called mejoranas Mejoranera from which this information has been taken mejor dicho (Spanish) rather me judice (Latin) in my opinion Meke (Fiji, Pacific Islands) a traditional folk dance, in which the dancers bodies are said to be possessed by spirits. Meke tell legends and stories of the past - achievements, tragedies and victories. Wars, deaths, marriages and births are all re enacted through Mekes mel abbreviation of 'melodramma', mélodrame (French) mel unit of subjectively estimated pitch. A sine wave with a frequency of 1000 hertz, 40 decibels above the listener's threshold of hearing, has by definition a pitch of 1000 mels. A sound that a listener judges to be 2 times the pitch of a sound with a pitch of 1000 mels has a pitch of 2000 mels; a pitch judged half of a 1000-mel tone would be 500 mels the table below shows the pitch in mels of a pure sine wave at a few frequencies. Do not conclude from this table that there is a one-to-one mapping between the dominant frequency of a musical tone and its pitch. Although frequency is the most important factor in determining pitch, the sensation of pitch is also influenced by other factors frequency (hertz) pitch (mels) 20 0 40 46 80 126 100 161 400 508 800 854 1000 1000 2000 1545 4000 2250 10,000 3075 [taken from IEEE Society on Acoustics, Speech, and Signal Processing] Mel scale mel. abbreviation of 'melody' Melakarta the collection of ragas in Carnatic music. Melakarta ragas are the fundamental ragas from which other ragas may be generated. For this reason the melakarta ragas are also known as janaka (parent) ragas. Melakarta ragas are also known as sampoorna ragas as they contain all seven swaras (notes) of the octave in both the ascending and the descending mode. There are 72 melakarta ragas Melakarta Melam see pandi melam Melancholia (Latin, from the Greek) a morbid condition of the mind characterised by groundless fears and acute depression Melancolia (Italian f.) melancholy melancolico (Italian) melancholic Mélancolie (French f.) melancholy Mélange (French m.) medley, pot-pourri, mixture mélanger (French) to mix Mélangeur de son (French f.) sound mixer ¡me las pagarás! (Spanish) you'll pay for this! (figurative) ¡me las vas a pagar! (Spanish) you'll pay for this! (figurative) Melaza see reggaeton Melbourne Shuffle a style of dance, originating in the late 1980s in the Melbourne (Australia) underground dance party scene Melbourne shuffle from which this extract has been taken Meldeschluß (German m.) closing date Mêlée (French f.) a confused encounter, a free-for-all, a heated argument or debate Meleket a long Ethiopian trumpet without finger holes mêler à (French) to mingle with, to join in Melic (Greek) of or pertaining to song lyric tuneful Melic composition a musical composition relating to song Méli-mélo (French m.) jumble Melism (English) melisma Melisma (s.), Melismata (pl.) (Greek) in vocal music, where one syllable is set over more than one note, in practise, six or more notes (Greek) a vocal grace or embellishment Melisma Melisma (s.), Melismas (pl.) (German n.) melisma Mélisme (French) melisma Melismatic the characteristic of a work containing a number of melismas and where the setting uses several notes on most, if not all, the syllables of the text melismático (Spanish) melismatic Melismatic organum florid or Acquitainian organum Melismatic song as opposed to syllabic song where each syllable is set to a different note, melismatic song allows a single syllable to be set to more than one note. Many commentators reserve the term 'melismatic melody' to cases where there are seven or more notes to a syllable. When the number of notes lies between two and six, these commentators apply the term 'neumatic' Melismatik (Greek) florid vocalisation mélismatique (French) melismatic melismatisch (German) melismatic me llamó la atención que estuviera sola (Spanish) I was surprised she was alone Meller melodrama (colloquial) Mellofon (German n.) mellophone Mellophon (German n.) mellophone Mellophone (English, French m.) a hybrid family of brass-instruments. The original 1880s Kohler & Son mellophone was a 'look-alike' of the 1868 Distin/Boosey & Co. ballad horn, which in turn was a 'look-alike' of the original Courtois Koenig horn of 1855. The Koenig horn itself was not an original instrument in internal design, and is very similar in bore-profile to Germanic instruments made in the Leipzig area by such instrument builders as Johann Joseph Schneider from 1846-1850, and earlier. This family includes the Antoniophone, made by Antoine Courtois, the tenor cors of Besson and Rudall Carte, the Altophone made by Henry Distin, early mellophones that bear Distin's name, though it is doubtful that he had a hand in their manufacture, the mellophone that appeared on various imports to the US between c. 1890 and c. 1910 that was no doubt purely phonetic in origin, the hatbox mellophone with detachable bell, the mellowphone that appeared on early King instruments, the Mellophonium manufactured by C. G. Conn in the 1950s in collaboration with Stan Kenton, the nineteenth-century cavalry models with bell-up and bell-forward designs, the frumpet and finally the marching mellophone. Professor Monks points out that these instruments are not flugel horns in the truest sense, but rather represent a divergence from a common ancestor- the keyed bugle, which essentially is a flugelhorn wrapped into bell-forward configuration and given keys. The direct line from there was the valved flugelhorn, which became extinct circa 1900. The best information thus far is that this later branch dates from the 1820s Al's Mellophone Page written by Greg S. Monks from which this extract has been taken plus information supplied directly by Professor Monks in a personal communication Mellophonium mellophone manufactured by C. G. Conn in the 1950s in collaboration with Stan Kenton Mellotron (Italian m., English, German n.) arguably the original multi-sampler, each key on the Mellotron had recordings of real instruments on a piece of magnetic tape under each note of the 3-octave keyboard and each key had its own pinch roller and playhead. When a key was pressed, the pinch roller enaged with a master capstan wheel and dragged the key's tape over a playhead Mellotron from which this extract has been taken Mélomane (French m./f.) music lover Mélotron (French m.) mellotron Mellowphone early King mellophones Mellow rock see 'soft rock' Melodeclamation (from Greek melos, 'song', and Latin declamatio, 'declamation') a music genre, kind of a concert piece using the principles of melodrama, a kind of extended technique, a type of rhythmic vocal writing that bears a resemblance to Sprechstimme. It is a rhythmical speech with musical accompaniment Melodeclamation from which this extract has been taken Melodeon (English, German n.) small reed organs manufactured in the United States in the early 1800s, known also as 'lap' or 'elbow organs'. These usually have a single keyboard, one or two sets of free reeds (that is, tuned reeds, one for each note), and bellows operated by your elbow or hand. Larger melodeons, also called seraphines, were fitted with pedals so that the player could operate the bellows with his or her feet Lap Organ, Concord, New Hampshire, United States, 1813-1884 Lap Organ (melodeon), Concord, New Hampshire, United States, ca 1848-50, Melodeon, Concord, New Hampshire, United States, ca 1860 (English, German n.) button keyed accordion with ten keys, giving a twenty-note diatonic range. In England this term includes all button-keyed accordions. In Ireland and Scotland it is more specific to the one row 10-keyed variety. Though now out of favour among musicians and listeners, the melodeon has had a huge influence on the playing of Irish music. The one row melodeon gained popularity in Britain from 1850 onwards and was a cheap and efficient adaptation of earlier French and English designs. By the early 1900s nearly all melodeons played in Britain were of German origin. It held popularity among French, Scottish, English, Irish and Italian musicians, who in turn brought it to the United States. Breton musicians brought it first to Canada and then to the south where the one-row model has a central role in Cajun music Irish Melodeon from which this extract above has been taken Melodestik (Greek) the rules or science of melody Melodia an organ stop resembling the clarabella (Italian f., Portuguese) melody, air, tune Melodía (Spanish f.) melody, mélodie (French) Melodía fija (Spanish f.) cantus firmis, fixed melody (for example, in organum, the line of plainchant over which the other lines are constructed) Melodía melismática (Spanish f.) melismatic melody. As opposed to syllabic melody where each syllable is set to a different note, melismatic melody allows a single syllable to be set to more than one note. Many commentators reserve the term 'melismatic melody' to cases where there are seven or more notes to a syllable. When the number of notes lies between two and six, these commentators apply the term 'neumatic' Melodía neumática (Spanish f.) neumatic melody, a musical setting in which, in the main, there are two to six notes per syllable, although the occasional syllable may only contain a single note Melodian hyppivä liike (Finnish) disjunct motion Melodía silábica (Spanish f.) syllabic melody, a musical setting where one and only one note is related to one syllable in the text Melodic vocal, singable in the style of a melody, the progression of a single part Melodica (s.), Melodicas (pl.) (English, German f.) a free-reed instrument similar to the 'accordion' and 'harmonica'. It has either a musical keyboard or a set of buttons to select the different notes, and is played by blowing air through a mouthpiece that fits into a hole in the side of the instrument. Pressing a key or button opens a hole, allowing air to flow through a reed. In the case of those with keyboards the range is usually two or three octaves Melodica Family Melodica from which this extract has been taken Melódica (Portuguese f.) melodic Melodic black metal it differs from traditional black metal, because the music is normally slower, and far more structured than its non-melodic counterpart. This genre draws its roots from black metal, melodic death metal and occasionally other forms of music depending on the band Melodic black metal from which this extract has been taken Melodic contrafact see 'contrafact' Melodic death metal often referred to as melodeath, a subgenre of 'death metal'. It contains more melodic guitar riffs and solos, which are sometimes acoustic, and also occasional 'clean' singing as opposed to traditional death grunt vocals Melodic death metal from which this extract has been taken Melodic interval the interval between two notes played one in succession to the other, i.e. not played simultaneously Melodic major scale so named because it is a mirror of the (ascending) melodic minor scale. In the melodic minor scale the 6th and 7th degrees of the diatonic aeolian mode are sharpened; in the melodic major scale the 6th and 7th degrees of the diatonic major scale are flattened Melodic minor also called 'tonic minor' and widely used in jazz, a scale with a minor 3rd, a major 6th and 7th (which, unlike the melodic minor scale described below, in the same up and down). This scale and its modes (e.g. mode 3, the augmented major 7th; mode 4, the Lydian dominant; mode 6, the half-diminished; mode 7, the altered) form the basis of 'melodic minor harmony' Melodic minor scale unusually in musical scales, the melodic minor scale differs when descending from when ascending. When descending, the seventh and sixth degrees are flattened so that the scale is the same as a descending natural minor scale. In the example above, in the descending scale B and A are flattened to Bb and Ab respectively Melodic Minor Melodic motion the quality of movement of a melody, including nearness or farness of successive pitches or notes in a melody. This may be described as conjunct or disjunct, stepwise or skipwise, respectively Melodic motion from which this extract has been taken Melodic music a term that covers various genres of non-classical music which are primarily characterised by the dominance of a single strong melody line. Rhythm, tempo and beat are subordinate to the melody line or tune, which is generally easily memorable, and followed without great difficulty. Melodic music is found in all parts of the world, overlapping many genres, and may be performed by a singer or orchestra, or a combination of the two Melodic music from which this short extract has been taken melodico (Italian) melodic, tuneful melódico (Portuguese, Spanish) melodic Melodicon an instrument, invented by Peter Riffelsen of Copenhagen (1800), in which tuning forks are struck by means of keys Melodic ostinato see ostinato Melodic sequence the successive repetition of a melodic unit at a high or low pitch Melodie (German f., Dutch) melody, song, tune, aria developed from simpler forms such as the romance, the bergerette and the scène, the mélodie is the French equivalent of the German Lied, 'art-song' rather than the lighter chanson Mélodie (French f.) melody, tune, air, melodía (Spanish f.) in music, the term mélodie generally applies to French art songs of the mid-nineteenth century to the present; it is the French equivalent of the German Lied. It is distinguished from a chanson, which is a folk or popular song Mélodie from which the second entry has been taken Mélodie bien sentie (French f.) the melody to be well expressed or accented Mélodie harmonisée note par note (French f.) chordal or block harmony Melodieinstrument (German n.) melody instrument Melodiekoppel (German n.) see Koppel Melodielehre (German f.) a study of melody Melodiesaite (German f.) treble string, corda melodica (Italian f.), corde mélodique (French f.) Melodiestem (Dutch) principal part, leading melody melodieus (Dutch) melodious, tuneful melodieusement (French) melodiously, sweetly Melodik (German f.) the science of melody melodik (German) melodious, tuneful Melodiograph a device for preserving a record of music, by recording the action of the keys of a musical instrument as it is being played upon Melodion a keyboard instrument invented by J. C. Dietz of Emmerich in 1806 in which the sounds were produced by pressing graduated steel bars against a rotating cylinder a glass harmonica melodiosamente (Italian) melodiously melodioso (Italian, Spanish) melodious, tuneful Melodious music with a pleasing melody mélodique (French) melodic melodisch (German) melodious, melodiously melodische Lijn (Dutch) melodic line melodische mineur-Toonladder (Dutch) melodic minor scale melodische Molltonleiter (German f.) melodic minor scale melodisches Moll (German n.) melodic minor Melodisch Dur-Leiter (German f.) melodic major scale Melodisch Moll-Leiter (German f.) melodic minor scale Mélodium (French) a kind of harmonium Melodram (German n.) melodrama Melodrama (English, German n.) a dramatic work with music where the dialogue is spoken particularly in the nineteenth century, genres of opera that use spoken dialogue accompanied or unaccompanied by an orchestra rather than recitative (an early example is to be found in Mozart's unfinished German opera Zaide) often applied to scenes in opera, for example, opéra comique and Singspiel, characterised in this way more generally, a dramatic form characterized by excessive sentiment, exaggerated emotion, sensational and thrilling action, and an artificially happy ending. Melodramas originally referred to romantic plays featuring music, singing, and dancing, but by the eighteenth century they connoted simplified and coincidental plots, bathos, and happy endings. These melodramatic traits are present in Gothic novels, western stories, popular films, and television crime shows, to name but a few more recent examples Literary Terms and Definitions from which the last entry has been taken Mélodrama (French f.) melodrama Mélodrame (French m.) melodrama Melodramma (Italian m.) a nineteenth-century term for a musical dramma similar to opera Melodramma melodrammatico (Italian) melodramatic Melody melodia (Italian), Melodie (German), chant (French), mélodie (French) (Middle English melodie, from Old French, from Late Latin melodia, from Greek meloidia, singing, choral song : melos, tune + aoide, song.) the horizontal dimension in music, a succession of organized pitches having a definite rhythm, where the vertical dimension arises from the harmony various terms are used to describe melodic features: diatonic the notes of the major or minor scale, distinct from chromatic leap motion from one pitch to another that is more than a whole tone away phrase a natural division of the melodic line, comparable to a sentence of speech pitch the height or depth of a note, i.e. generally expressed in terms of its frequency repeated notes reiteration of a note at the same pitch level step motion from one scale degree to the next, whether by a semitone or a whole tone unison identity in pitch, for example when all singing or playing the same note Melody Melody an air or tune Melody dominated homophony music in which the top line has a dominant melody in a different rhythm, and all the voices accompany it with homophonic chords. Most popular music can be described as melody dominated homophony. This type of music could be considered a monody, but this term is generally applied to Italian song of the early seventeenth century Melody dominated homophony from which this extract has been taken Melograph a device which writes down in notes what is extemporised on the pianoforte Melologo (Italian) a musical melodrama in which the effect of declamation is enhanced by background music Meloman (German m./f.) one who has a 'mania' for music, a music lover Mélomane (French m./f.) one who has a 'mania' for music, a music lover mélomane (French) music-mad Mélomanie (French f.) an extreme passion, or mania, for music Meloneras Spanish dance from Daimiel. They are variation of the seguidillas manchegas and are danced by two or four couples at a slow pace, accompanied by castanets Melopea (Italian f., Spanish f.) melopoeia [Spanish entry provided by Donald Skoog] Mélopée (French f.) melopoeia Melopoeia the art of creating melody melody, now often used for a melodic passage, rather than a complete melody words and music combined vocal declamation of a drama Melopeya (Spanish f.) melopoeia [entry provided by Donald Skoog] Melophare a lantern, inside of which music paper, previously soaked in oil, is placed, so that the notes can be read when a light is placed inside (used for serenades at night) Mélophone an experimental accordion Mélophone, Paris, France, ca 1845 Melopiano a keyboard instrument invented by Caldara of Turin (1870) the unusual hammer action allowing the player to produced sustained sounds and a crescendo and decrescendo Melopeo y maestro (1613) written by Pietro Cerone (1566-1625), an Italian music theorist, singer and priest, an enormous music treatise which is useful in the study of compositional practices of the sixteenth century Méloplaste (French) a piece of equipment from which the méthode de méloplaste invented by Pierre Galin in 1817, takes its name, a board with staves of five lines and some auxiliary lines, on which the teacher shows the notes he wishes the class to sing by means of a pointer, one end of which bears a small ball that represents a note head ¿me lo podría envolver aparte? (Spanish) could you wrap it separately? Melopoeïa (Greek) the art of writing melody Melorhythm the melody/rhythm complex that arising in certain genres of African drumming, those using drums that can produce a number of tones at different pitches Melos (Greek, literally 'tune, song, melody') melos (song) falls into two divisions - the personal song of the poet, and the choric song of his band of trained dancers. There are remains of old popular songs with no alleged author, in various styles: the Mill Song - a mere singing to while away time - the Spinning Song, the Wine-Press Song, and the Swallow Song, with which the Rhodian boys went round begging in early spring. Rather higher than these were the Skolia, songs sung at banquets or wine-parties (Greek) a term used by Richard Wagner (1813-83) to denote vocal progressions in the recitatives in some of his operas that do not have the form or unity of regular melodies Melothesia (Greek) the invention of melody Melotheta (Greek) composer, musician Meloton a small cylinder belly organ that had no pipes but instead used reeds Melotypie (German) the art of printing notes by type mels abbreviation of melodramma serio (Italian) melss abbreviation of melodramma semiserio (Italian) Membrana (Italian f.) membrane, drumhead, vellum Membranofon (German n.) membranophone Membranofoon (Dutch) membranophone Membranophon (German n.) membranophone Membranophone from the Sachs-Hornbostel hierarchical scheme for classifying musical instruments, an instrument that produces sound through the vibration of a stretched membrane, one of two forms, the drum and the mirliton Membro (Italian m.) member, limb Meme the term coined by Richard Dawkins that refers to any piece of information transferable from one mind to another. Examples might include thoughts, ideas, theories, practices, habits, songs, dances and moods. Different definitions of meme generally agree, very roughly, that a meme consists of some sort of a self-propagating unit of cultural evolution having a resemblance to the gene (the unit of genetics) Meme from which this extract has been taken même (French) same même mouvement (French) in the same time, at the same speed même mouvement que précédemment (French) in the same time as that which precedes (it/them) Memento (Latin, literally 'remember!') the commemoration of the living or the commemoration of the dead in the Canon of the Mass anything that serves to remind one of past events or of absent persons (for example, some object kept for that purpose) Memento mori (Latin, literally 'remember that you must die') an object (most commonly a skull) reminding one of the inevitability of death and the need for penitence. Other symbols of mortality include clocks and candles. A danse macabre with only one pair of dancers is also a known as a memento mori me miró de arriba abajo (Spanish) he looked me up and down Memoir (s.), Memoirs (pl.) (from French mémoire, Latin memoria) a record or report of things done, usually within the personal knowledge of the author Memoiren (German pl.) memoirs, reminiscences Memoir-novel a novel purporting to be a factual or autobiographical account but which is completely or partially imaginary memorabile (Italian) memorable Memorabilia (Latin pl., 'memorable things') things kept to remind the owner of events from his or her past Memorandum (s.), Memoranda (pl.) (Latin, 'a note of') a thing to be remembered (often a note that aids future recollection) memore (Italian) mindful, grateful Memoria (Italian f., Spanish f.) memory, souvenir me la aprendí de memoria (Spanish: I learnt it by heart) Memoria fiel (Spanish f.) reliable memory Memorial (Spanish m.) notebook, memorial Memoriale (Italian m.) memorial Memorial reconstruction Renaissance actors, lacking access to promptbooks, reconstructed the text of a play from their own (sometimes faulty) memory, from which reconstruction defective versions of various plays found their way into print Memorial reconstruction Memorias (Spanish f. pl.) memoirs (biographical) Memoria technica (Latin) a system of mnemonics, a device or system of devices to assist the memory Memorie (Italian f. pl.) memoirs (biographical) Memorión (Spanish m.) a very good memory Memorión (m.), Memoriona (f.) (Spanish) a person with a very good memory memorión (m.), memoriona (f.) (Spanish) with a very good memory Mémorisation (French f.) storage (for example, on recording tape) Mémorisation du son (French f.) sound storage (for example, on recording tape) memorístico (m.), memorística (f.) (Spanish) acquired by memory Memorización (Spanish f.) memorizing, the act of committing to memory memorizar (Spanish) to memorize, to committing to memory memorizzare (Italian) memorize, commit to memory Memorizzazione (Italian f.) storage (for example, on recording tape) Memorizzazione del suono (Italian f.) sound storage (for example, on recording tape) Memory play the term coined by Tennessee Williams to describe non-realistic dramas, such as The Glass Menagerie, in which the audience experiences the past as remembered by a narrator, complete with music from the period remembered, and images representing the characters' thoughts, fears, emotions, and recollections projected on a scrim in the background Literary Terms and Definitions from which this entry has been taken Memphis blues a type of blues music that was pioneering in the early part of the twentieth century by musicians associated with vaudeville and medicine shows. It was in the Memphis blues that groups of musicians first assigned one guitarist to play rhythm, and one to play lead and solos, which disposition has become standard in rock and roll and much of popular music Memphis blues from which this extract has been taken Memphis soul a stylish, funky, uptown soul music that is not as hard edged as Southern soul Memphis soul Memra (Aramaic) a Syrian preaching homily, in poetic form, that influenced the earliest Byzantine hymnography, the troparion and kontakion Memsahib (Hindi from the Arabic) a European married woman (the form of address by which Indian servants address or refer to their European mistress) men (Italian) less men. abbreviation of meno (Italian: less) Menaaneim (Hebrew, literally 'to shake') cymbals, probably the sistrum (2 Samuel 6:5) Ménage (French m.) married couple, housework (English, from the French) a household (particularly, a man and a woman keeping house together) and the management of the same Ménage à trois (French m.) a household consisting of a woman, her husband and her lover, or of a man, his wife and his mistress Ménagement (French m.) care and consideration ménager (French) to treat gently and with tact, to be sparing in the use of, to prepare (carefully) ménager (m.), ménagère (f.) (French) household, domestic Ménagère (French f.) housewife Ménagerie (French f.) menagerie, a collection of animals Mención (Spanish f.) mention Mención honorífica (Spanish f.) honourable mention Mendi see di Mendicanti see Ospedaletto Mendicant orders term for the friars who engaged in begging because of their dependence on alms for their support see 'friars' mener le branle (French) to lead the dance mener l'enquête (French) lead the inquiry Ménesterel (m.), Ménesterelle (f.) minstrel Ménestral (m.), Ménestralle (f.) minstrel Ménestrel (m.), Ménestrelle (f.) minstrel Ménestrels (French m. pl.) minstrels Menestrello (Italian m.) minstral Ménétriers (French m. pl.) originally a term meaning 'minstrels', but later used to describe rustic mjusicians and particularly 'bad fiddlers' Meneur (French m.) leader Meneur de jeu (French m.) compère Menge (German f.) amount, quantity, crowd (people), set (mathematics) mengen (German) mix Mengenabweichung (German f.) discrepancy or variance in quantity Menhir (Breton) a tall upright monumental stone of a type found throughout Europe, but particularly in Brittany Menicus (s.), Menisci (pl.) (Latin, from the Greek) lens that is convex on one face and concave on the other, so that it has a crescent-shaped cross-section the convex or concave surface of a liquid in a tube, resulting from the capillary attraction or surface tension Ménière's disease a disease of the inner ear characterized by episodes of dizziness and tinnitus and progressive hearing loss (usually unilateral) Ménière's disease Meñique (Spanish m.) little finger, auricular (Spanish), auriculaire (French) meno (Italian) less, not so meno allegro (Italian) not so fast meno andante (Italian) slower meno forte (Italian) not so loudly Menologion (s.), Menologia (pl.) readings from the Bible (usually) to be read at appointed times in the year meno mosso (Italian) less quick, less movement, slower, not so fast meno moto (Italian) less quick, less movement, slower meno piano (Italian) not so softly meno presto (Italian) less quick, last fast menor (Spanish, Portuguese) minor (reference to key), mineur (French) meno vivace (Italian) less quick, slow down meno vivo (Italian) not so quick Mensa (Latin, literally 'table') the top stone slab of an altar Menschengeschlecht (German n.) mankind Menschenstimme (German f.) human voice Menschlichestimme (German f.) human voice menselijke Stem (Dutch) human voice Mensile (Italian m.) monthly mensile (Italian) monthly Mens rea (Latin) guilty mind, criminal intention the intention to commit an offence whilst knowing it to be wrong Mens sana in corpore sano (Latin) a sound mind in a healthy body Menstruum (Latin) a solvent, a liquid in which a solid can be dissolved menstruus (Latin) monthly mensual (Spanish) monthly Mensuel (French m.) monthly mensuel (French) monthly mensuellement (French) monthly Mensur (German f.) mensura (German f.) a fencing-match or duel between two German students Mensura (Latin) measure correct measurement of intervals in mensurable music, the word had the meaning of 'time' when speaking of organ pipes the term is the equivalent of 'scale' (i.e. the diameter of a pipe) Mensuraalschrift (Dutch) mensural notation Mensurable music measured music, music written with notes having proportionate time-values as distinguished from Plainsong in which the rhythm is free mensural (German) mensurable Mensuralgesang measured music, music written with notes having proportionate time-values as distinguished from Plainsong in which the rhythm is free (German m.) florid vocalisation Mensuralmusik (German f.) mensural music Mensural notation (English, Mensuralnotation (German f.)) also called 'proportional notation', musical notation that prescribes specific relative durations of notes. In modern notation this is done with crotchets (quarter notes), minims (half notes), etc., assembled into units called bars (measures). Medieval chant notation does not specify such rhythmic values for notes History of Music Notation Mensural notation Mensural music a term applied to fifteenth- and sixteenth-century unbarred music where the proportional relationship between the note symbols might be duple (as they are today) or triple, depending on the time signature Mensuration Mensuralmusik (German f.) mensural music Mensuralnotation (German) mensural notation Mensuralnoten (German) mensural notation Mensuration (English, French f.) in general, the act, process, or art, of measuring or, collectively, the measurements themselves in music of the Renaissance, the relationships (particularly the proportional relationships) between the time values or durations of the various note signs Introduction to Mensuration in Renaissance Music by Alain Naigeon Mensuration canon also called a prolation canon. Mensuration is an early musical term which is analogous to our notion of time signature. A mensuration canon can be described as a mathematical dilation, where each "voice" carries the same melodic line but at a different speed. In some of the early examples of mensuration canons from the 15th and 16th centuries, the melody line is denoted once, along with several time signatures and each musician is expected to perform the line at one of the time signatures. The faster performers might be instructed to repeat their line several times or else the piece might stop short of the slower performers completing the entire melody line Prolation canon A Mathematical Moment in Music from which this extract has been taken Mensurstrich (German m.) the barring of modern editions of early music by placing the barline between the staves rather than across the staff, so that the original notation is unaffected by it and the performer can imagine that they are using an unbarred part Mensurstriche mentalement (French) mentally Mentalité (French f.) mental attitude mente, alla see alla mente Menterie (French f.) untruth, falsehood, lie Menteur (m.), Menteuse (f.) (French) liar, fibber menteur (m.), menteuse (f.) (French) fallacious, false, illusory (dreams), untruthful (person), lying (person) Menthe à l'eau (French f.) a glass of peppermint cordial mentholé (French) mentholated (for example, a cough sweet) Mention (French f.) a note, a comment Mention assez bien (French f.) one grade above a pass (examination result C, lower second class degree) Mention bien (French f.) two grades above a pass (examination result B, upper second class degree) Mention passable (French f.) pass grade (examination result D, third class degree) Mention très bien (French f.) top grade (examination result A, first class degree) Mention très honorable (French f.) (doctorate) [with] distinction mentir (French) to lie mentir à (French) to betray, to belie Mento the most popular native dance of Jamaica, which resembles a Cuban rumba, played in slow tempo in a more general sense Mento is the original folk music created by Jamaicans using instruments that range from saxophones, flutes, bamboo fifes, PVC pipes, banjos, violins, bamboo fiddles, guitars, rhumba boxes, double basses, rhythm sticks, shakkas and drums played with both sticks and hands Mento Mento Mentonera (Spanish f.) chin-rest (for example, on a violin), mentoniera (Italian f.), Kinnhalter (German m.), mentonnière (French f.) Mentoniera (Italian f.) chin-rest (for example, on a violin), mentonera (Spanish f.), Kinnhalter (German m.), mentonnière (French f.) Mentonnière (French f.) chin-strap (helmet) (French f.) chin-rest (for example, on a violin), mentoniera (Italian f.), Kinnhalter (German m.), mentonera (Spanish f.) Menu (French m.) bill of fare menu (f.), menue (f.) (French) slender, slim, slight (figure, finger, person, etc.), thin (voice), tiny (hand-writing), fine (cutting) Menuet (French m., Dutch) minuet Menuett (German n.) minuet Menuetto (supposedly Italian) minuet German composers used menuetto believing it to be the Italian word for minuet - in fact the correct word is minuetto Menuiserie (French f.) joinery, carpentry, a joiner's workshop, piece of joinery Menuiserie d'art (French f.) cabinetwork Menuisier (French m.) a joiner, a carpenter Menuisier d'art (French m.) a cabinet-maker Menu peuple (French m.) humble folk Menus frais (French m. pl.) incidental expenses, minor expenses Menus monnaie (French m. pl.) small change (money) Menus plaisirs (French m. pl.) the minor pleasures of life (as measured in terms of money spent) historically the term was used generally for entertainments organised for French royalty Menus propos (French m. pl.) small talk me pagan poco, pero algo es algo (Spanish) they don't pay me much, but it's better than nothing Mephistopheles also Mephistophilus, Mephistophilis, Mephostopheles, Mephisto and variants, a name often given to one representation of the devil or Satan. It is also the name used for the demon in the Faust legend Mephistopheles from which this extract has been taken Mephisto Polka (S217) a piece of program music written in folk-dance style for solo piano by Franz Liszt in 1882-3. The work's program is the same as that of the same composer's four Mephisto Waltzes Mephisto Polka from which this extract has been taken Mephisto Waltzes four waltzes composed by Franz Liszt in 1859-62, 1880-81, 1883 and 1885. Nos. 1-2 were composed for orchestra, later arranged for piano, piano duet and two pianos, whereas 3 and 4 were written for piano only. Of the four, the first is the most popular and has been frequently performed in concert and recorded Mephisto Waltzes from which this extract has been taken Mépris (French m.) contempt, scorn méprisable (French) despicable Méprise (French f.) mistake mépriser (French) to scorn, to despise méprisant (m.), méprisante (f.) (French) scornful me provocó arcadas (Spanish) it made me retch me queda muy ajustado (Spanish) it's too tight (for me) meraviglioso (Italian) marvellous Mercado (Spanish m.) market Mercado Común, el (Spanish) the Common Market Mercado de abastos (Spanish m.) wholesale food market, market (selling fresh food) Mercado de artesanías (Spanish m.) craft market Mercado de divisas (Spanish m.) foreign exchange market Mercado de las pulgas (Spanish m.) flea market Mercado de trabajo (Spanish m.) job market, labour market Mercado nacional (Spanish m.) domestic market Mercado negro (Spanish m.) black market Mercado paralelo (Spanish m.) parallel market Mercado persa (Spanish m.) bazaar, street market Mercador's comma an interval defined by the frequency ratio of 53 pure fifths and 31 octaves, equivalant to 3.6 cents Mercian the dialect of Old English spoken in the region of Mercia Merci beaucoup (French) Thank you very much Merci bien (French) Thanks a lot (sincere and sarcastic) merci d'avance (French) thanks in advance merci de (French) thank you for (your kindness. etc.) Merci mille fois (French) Thanks a million merci pour (French) thank you for (the book, etc.) Mercy see Gottschalk Mereng the Haitian version of the merengue Merengue (English, German f.) a spirited dance style from the Dominican Republic, with a syncopated duple rhythm. that is normally accompanied by a small accordion, a two headed drum called the tambora, and a singer who plays the güiro (scraper). It was introduced into Puerto Rico and then the United States during the 1930s, then typically performed by larger ensembles including alto saxophones, trumpets, congas and drums. The same music is called méringue or mereng in Haiti where it is guitar, not accordion based tempos vary a great deal and the Dominicans enjoy a sharp quickening in pace towards the latter part of the dance. The most favoured routine at the clubs and restaurants that run a dance floor is a slow bolero, breaking into a merengue, which becomes akin to a bright, fast jive in its closing stages. The ballroom merengue is slower and has a modified hip action. However, whatever the tempo, it is the rhythm that dominates the music, unsyncopated and including an strong beat on 1 and 3 a style of vallenato music from Colombia Merengue (music) Merengue (dance) Merengue Merengue from which some of this information is drawn Merengue de salón the ballroom version of merengue Merengue típico cibaeño (Dominican Republic) the name given in the early twentieth century to the original form of the merengue Merenhouse see Merenrap Merenrap or Merenhouse, which from the mid-1990s which added 'house' and 'hip hop' elements to merengue Merensongo an Afro-Cuban rhythm Meretrix (s.), Meretices (pl.) (French f.) a prostitute Merging see 'levelling' Méride 1/43 part of an octave. This name was chosen by Joseph Sauveur (1653-1716) in 1696. The méride and eptaméride were the first logarithmic interval measures proposed. Sauveur favoured 43-tone equal temperament because the small intervals are well represented in it. He had set the comma to one step, then found a range of 2, 3 or 4 steps for the chromatic semitone, corresponding to 31, 43 and 55 tones per octave. He found 43 to be optimal because 4 steps is almost exactly a 16:15 minor second and 7 steps almost exactly the geometric mean of three 9:8 and two 10:9 whole tones. The chromatic scale contained in 43-tET is virtually identical to 1/5-comma meantone tuning Logarithmic Interval Measures from which this material has been taken Meridians (in a bell) vertical nodal lines resulting from the bell's geometric form which are associated with vibratory movement Méridional (s.), Méridionale (f.) (French) a native of the South of France Meringue a confection made of icing-sugar and white of egg, made into small cakes or speared over a pudding or merengue, a spirited dance style from the Dominican Republic, with a syncopated duple rhythm. that is normally accompanied by a small accordion, a two headed drum called the tambora, and a singer who plays the güiro (scraper). It was introduced into Puerto Rico and then the United States during the 1930s, then typically performed by larger ensembles including alto saxophones, trumpets, congas and drums. The same music is called méringue or mereng in Haiti where it is guitar, not accordion based Merino wool very fine woollen cloth made from the merino sheep, popular for outdoor garments such as jackets and sweaters mériter de (French) to deserve to merklich etwas einhaltend (German) noticeably somewhat restrained [entry suggested by Robert Lustrea: this marking is found in Mahler 5th Symphony, mvt. 3, 2nd trombone part 13 bars/measures after 23 - translation suggested by Douglas Nasrawi] Merline see serinette Merlon a solid portion between two crenels (openings) in a battlement or crenelated wall Merodi (Japan) a serrated, flexible plastic pipe, both ends of which are open. The player holds one end and swings the pipe in a circle over his head. If the speed of swinging is increased, higher overtones are heard, so that a kind of melody can be played Merodi from which this extract has been taken Merry happy, joyful, giocoso (Italian), lustig (German), gai (French) Merry-andrew slang for a clown or a mountebank's assistant at a fair Mersenne, Marin (1588-1648) also Marin Mersennus or le Père Mersenne, he was a French theologian, philosopher, mathematician and music theorist. Of his works in this connection the best known is Traité de l'harmonie universelle (also referred to as simply Harmonie universelle) of 1636, dealing with the theory of music and musical instruments. It is regarded as a source of information on seventeenth-century music, especially French music and musicians, to rival even the works of Pietro Cerone (1566-1625) whose El melopeo y maestro: tractado de música theorica y pratica; en que se pone por extenso; lo que uno para hazerse perfecto musico ha menester saber, consisting of 22 volumes, 849 chapters, and 1160 pages in the original Spanish, is useful in the studying compositional practices of the sixteenth century Marin Mersenne from which this extract has been taken Mersey beat see 'Mersey sound' Mersey Sound also known as the 'Liverpool Sound' and 'Mersey Beat', the name the media gave to the music created by Merseyside groups between 1958 and 1964. The most popular line-up comprised lead, rhythm and bass guitars plus drums as popularised by The Beatles and The Searchers Mersey sound from which this extract has been taken Merton Abbey collection of buildings set in some 7acres of grounds on the banks of the river Wandle 7 miles from the centre of London where William Morris set up the workshops for Morris & Co merveilleux (French) marvellous Mesa (Spanish f.) table, desk, a high table-land or plateau Mésalliance (French) an unsuitable marriage (the term is applied particularly to marriage with a person of inferior social position) mesarse (Spanish) tear at one's hair Mescolanza (Italian f.) a medley, a quodlibet (Italian f.) a mixture of discordant sounds, bad harmony mescolare con (Italian) to mix with mescolarsi con (Italian) to mingle with Mescolatore (Italian m.) mixer (electronics) Mescolatore di suono (Italian m.) sound mixer Mese (Greek) the middle string on the lyre Mesemba or 'Angolan semba', a traditional ritual music from Angola in Southern Africa me senté atrás (Spanish) I sat in the back, I sat at the back Meseta (Spanish f.) plateau, landing (staircase) mesiánico (Spanish) Messianic Mesias (Spanish m.) Messiah Mesilla (Spanish f.) small table Mesilla de noche (Spanish f.) bedside table Mesne (old French) the holding of an estate of a superior lord (by a feudal lord), occurring at a time intermediate between two dates (as a legal term) Mesodiplosis the repetition of a word or phrase at the middle of every clause Mesolabium a device attributed to Archimedes or Eratosthenes and described by Vitruvius (c. 90-20 BC) in Book IX of his De architectura a textbook written for Roman architects. The mesolabium is a measuring tool for finding two mean proportionals. In 1558, Gioseffo Zarlino published instructions on how to tune a lute using such a device (Part 2 of Zarlino's Le institutione harmoniche) Mesón (Spanish m.) inn Mesonera (Spanish f.) landlady Mesonero (Spanish m.) landlord Mesopic vision vision at light levels at which both retinal cones (receptors for colour vision) and retinal rods (receptors for black and white vision) are stimulated Mesotónico (Spanish) mean-tuned Mesozeugma see 'zeugma' mesquin (m.), mesquine (f.) (French) sordid, shabby Mesquinerie (French f.) shabbiness, little-mindedness Messa (Italian f.) the Mass Messa bassa (Italian f.) a silent Mass, whispered by the priest during a musical performance Messa concertata (Italian f.) a Mass consisting of concerted music Messa di voce (Italian f., literally 'placing the voice') a crescendo (i.e. swelling) and a diminuendo (i.e. diminishing) on a single sustained note (particular in singing) Messa in scena (Italian f.) production, staging Messanzo (Italian) mesolanza Messa per i defunti (Italian f., literally 'mass for the dead') requiem mass Messe (French f., German f.) mass, misa (Spanish) Messe basse (French f., German f.) low mass, misa baja (Spanish) Messe basse solennelle (French f., literally 'solemn low mass') the Abbé Perrin, in the preface to a collection of his own motet texts (1665), tells us that for Louis XIV's messe basse solennelle, the musical highpoint of daily worship at Versailles, "three [motets] are usually sung: a grand, a petit for the élévation, and a Domine salvum fac regem ('God save the king'). I have made the grands long enough that they can last a quarter of an hour ... and occupy the beginning of the Mass up to the élévation. Those of the élévation are shorter and can last up to the Post-Communion where the Domine [salvum] begins." Messe chantée (French f.) a sung Mass, misa cantada (Spanish) Messe concertante (French f.) a Mass consisting of concerted music Messe de fiançailles (French f.) a betrothal Mass Messe de funérailles (French f.) a funeral Mass Messe de Nostre Dame (French, 'Mass of Our Lady') a polyphonic mass composed before 1365 by the French poet, composer and cleric Guillaume de Machaut (circa 1300-1377). One of the great masterpieces of medieval music and of all religious music, it is the earliest complete setting of the Ordinary of the Mass attributable to a single composer Messe de Nostre Dame from which this extract has been taken Messe de Requiem (French f.) requiem mass Messe des morts (French f., literally 'mass for the dead') requiem mass Messe des trépassés (French f.) funeral mass Messe en plein air (French f.) outdoor mass, misa de campaña (Spanish) Messe grégorienne (French f.) mass using the Gregorian rite Messe noire (French f.) black mass Messe pontificale (French f.) papal mass, misa pontifical (Spanish) Messe solennelle (French f.) solemn mass Messe votive (French f.) votive mass (celebrated for a special intention) Meßlatte (German f.) surveyor's rod Messglöcken (German f.) Sanctus bells Messiah, The oratorio composed by George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) to a libretto written by poet and landowner, Charles Jennens, for which there is an almost unbroken performing tradition going back to the eighteenth century. Handel had reached a low point in his London career. Audiences had turned their back on his opera seria and he moved to Dublin. The Lord Lieutenant of Dublin wanted to present a work for charity and Handel began work on the Messiah on August 22 1741. Twenty-three days later it was finished and it received its first Dublin performance on 13 Apr. 1742. Unique among Handel's oratories, Messiah is more religious than his other work; the text is purely scriptural and does not tell a story in the conventional sense. Rather, it is a meditation on Christ's life and ultimate triumph, and a celebration of redemption. It was an immediate success despite some reservations about a work based on a religious theme being performed in a London theatre (Covent Garden). The work was revived 39 times before the composer's death Handel's Messiah Through the Centuries Messing (German n.) brass (metal) Messingblæsere (Danish) brass (e.g. orchestral section) Messingrohr (German n.) brass tubing, brass pipe Messingsaite (German f.) brass string, corda d'ottone (Italian f.), corde de laiton (French f.) Messingstreifen (German m.) brass strip Messinqo (Ethiopia) a one-string fiddle played with a bow, associated particularly with the azmaris Messklingeln (German m. pl.) Sanctus bells mestamente (Italian) plaintively, grievingly Mestee a person with less than one-eighth black ancestry Mester de Clerecía (Castilan, 'ministry of Clergy') a Castilian literature genre that can be understood as an opposition and surpassing of Mester de Juglaría. It was cultivated in the thirteenth century by Spanish clergymen Mester de Clerecía from which this extract has been taken Mester de juglaría (Castilan, 'ministry of jongleury') a Castilian-language literature genre from the 12th and 13th centuries, transmited orally by "juglares" who made their living by telling and singing these stories in public places and palaces together with performing short theatral scenes, acrobacy or otherwise diverting the public Mester de juglaría from which this extract has been taken Mestizia (Italian f.) sadness Mestizaje (Spanish m.) crossbreeding Mestizo (m.), Mestiza (f.) (Portuguese, mestiço; French, métis: from Late Latin mixticius, literally 'mixed') a term of Spanish origin used to designate the people of mixed European and indigenous non-European ancestry. The term has traditionally been applied mostly to those of mixed European and indigenous Amerindian ancestry who inhabit the region spanning the Americas; from the Canadian prairies in the north to Argentina and Chile's Patagonia in the south. In the other regions and countries previously under Spanish, Portuguese or French colonial rule, variants of the term may also be in usage for people of other colonial European and indigenous non-European (Asian, African, and Oceanianic, etc.) mixtures. In the Philippines, the term mestiso, or mistiso, is a broad reference to individuals of any non-specific foreign admixture to an ethnic Filipino base stock (Spanish) cross-breed (animal) Mestizo from which this extract has been taken mestizo (m.), mestiza (f.) (Spanish) cross-bred, half-caste Mestizo music mestizo music, like the mestizo themselves, combines both European and indigenous musical forms and musical instruments mesto (Italian) mournful, sad, melancholy, pensive mestoso (Italian) mournful, sad, pensive Mestre da capela (Portuguese) maestro di cappella Mesura (Spanish f.) moderation mesurado (Spanish) moderate Mesure (French f.) measure (bar), misura (Italian f.), mesura (Spanish f.), Takt (German m.), mesure (French f.) in French chivalric literature, the equivalent of Latin moderatio, the ability to follow a golden mean and not go to unreasonable extremes. This trait contrasts with the demesure (excessive actions or unconrolled passions) of figures like the knight Roland in the Chanson de Roland. In the literature of courtly love, a frequent debate is whether the ideal courtly lover should have mesure or demesure (French f.) beat, time, tempo (French) in fifteenth-century dance, a phrase or measure. The number of doubles (three-movement step pattern done the first step with body lowered, the other two with body raised, found in odd numbers) determines the size of the mesure - petite (1 double), moyenne (3), grande (5), while the presence or absence of simples (always done in sets of two; one short step with the body lowered and one longer step with the body raised) after the doubles determines the mesure's degree of perfection; simples after = mesure parfaite, absence of simples = mesure imparfaite Medieval Dance from which this extract has been taken "Musical term: a certain regular movement that is made with the hand to guide the singer's voice according to the slow or fast beats of the music. There are various mesures [meters] in music, and they are shown by certain numbers at the beginning of the piece. All the beats of the mesure must be beaten equally. ... Dance term: a sort of cadence [rhythm] and regular movement." - Richelet (1681) "I find that we confuse mesure with what is called cadence or mouvement. Mesure refers to the length and equalness of the beats, and cadence is strictly speaking the esprit [spirit] and the soul that must be added to it. This cadence scarcely applies to Italian sonatas. But all our airs for the violin and our pieces for harpsichord, viols, etc., select and seem to wish to express some feeling. Thus, not having invented signs or symbols to communicate our individual ideas, we try to remedy this by marking a few words such as tendrement, vivement, etc., at the beginning of our pieces, to show approximately what we mean." - Couperin, Art de toucher, (1716) Literary Terms and Definitions from which the second entry has been taken Ranums' Panat Times from which these quotations have been taken mesuré (French) measured, moderate in strict time Mesure à cinq-quatre (French f.) 5/4 time Mesure à deux-deux (French f.) 2/2 time Mesure à deux-quatre (French f.) 2/4 time Mesure à deux temps (French f.) common time, two beats in a bar Mesure à la clef (French f.) time signature Mesure à neuf-huit (French f.) 9/8 time Mesure à neuf-quatre (French f.) 9/4 time Mesure à quatre-deux (French f.) 4/2 time Mesure à quatre-huit (French f.) 4/8 time Mesure à quatre-quatre (French f.) 4/4 time Mesure à six-huit (French f.) 6/8 time Mesure à six-quatre (French f.) 6/4 time Mesure à temps inégaux (French f.) irregular meter Mesure à trois-deux (French f.) 3/2 time Mesure à trois-huit (French f.) 3/8 time Mesure à trois-quatre (French f.) 3/4 time Mesure à trois temps (French f.) triple time, three beats in a bar Mesure complexe (French f.) irregular meter (for example, 5/4, 7/4) Mesure composée (French f.) compound time, triple time, zusammengesetzte Taktart (German) Mesure composée binaire (French f.) compound duple time Mesure composée ternaire (French f.) compound triple time Mesure composite (French f.) uneven meter Mesure impaire (French f.) odd meter, uneven meter mésurer (French) to measure mésurer en (mètres) (French) to measure in (metres) Mesure simple (French f.) simple time, duple time, einfache Taktart (German) Mesure simple binaire (French f.) simple duple time Mesure simple ternaires (French f.) simple triple time Mesure ternaire (French f.) triple meter Met abbreviation of 'Metropolitan Opera House, New York' met. abbreviation of 'metronome' Meta (Spanish f.) goal, finish (of a race, course, career, etc.) Metà (Italian f.) half Metabolismo (Spanish m.) metabolism Metacarpiano (Spanish m.) metacarpal Metadrama drama in which the subject of the play is dramatic art itself, especially when such material breaks up the illusion of watching reality Literary Terms and Definitions from which this entry has been taken Metafiction fiction in which the subject of the story is the act or art of storytelling of itself, especially when such material breaks up the illusion of "reality" in a work Literary Terms and Definitions from which this entry has been taken Metafísica (Spanish f.) metaphysics metafísico (Spanish) metaphysical Metáfora (Spanish f.) metaphor metafórico (Spanish) metaphorical Metais (Portuguese) brass (instruments) Metal as applied to metal organ pipes, usually a mixture of tin and lead. Pipes made of pure tin give a clear piercing tone, while those using tin with a small amount of lead give a softer tone. Too much lead produces poor sounding pipes (Spanish m.) metal, brass (instruments), timbre (of the voice) Metal block (Italian m., English, French m.) a percussion instrument made of a block of metal Metal castanets or 'cymbal tongs', castagnette di ferro or castagnette di metallo (Italian), castagnettes de fer or xastagnettes de métal (French), Metallkastagnetten (German), castañuelas de metal or castañuelas de hierro (Spanish) a percussion instrument with a pair of tiny cymbals attached to spring tongs Metal clarinet clarinette métallique Metalcore a musical genre consisting of a mix between heavy metal and hardcore Metalcore from which this extract has been taken Metales (Spanish) brass (section of an orchestra) metálico (Spanish) metal (object), metallic (sound) Metaliterature literary art focused on the subject of literary art itself Literary Terms and Definitions from which this entry has been taken metalizare (Spanish) to become mercenary (figurative) metalizzare il suono (Italian) schmettern Metallblock (German m.) metal block Metal leaf (in gilding) also known as 'Dutch metal' and 'composition leaf'. Metal leaf is an alloy of gold-coloured base metals (copper, tin and zinc). It is produced in leaves that are thicker and larger than gold leaf. They can be manipulated by hand. Metal leaf will tarnish and will eventually disintegrate completely metallico (Italian) metallic, of a metallic quality metallisch (German) metallic, of a metallic quality Metallkastagnetten (German f. pl.) metal castanets metallo (Italian) metallic, clear in tone (as with a voice described as bel metallo di voce (Italian: 'a voice that is clear, full and brilliant') Metallofon (German n.) metallophone Metallophon (German n.) metallophone Metallophone (English) metal idiophones are frequently called 'metallophones' or or 'metalophone', for example, an instrument like a pianoforte, where the strings have been replaced with metal bars, or an instrument like the xylophone, but with metallic instead of wooden bars Keyed Metallophone, Italy, probably 1675-1750 Métallophone (French m.) metallophone Metallofono (Italian m.) metallophone Metalloid a nonmetallic element, such as arsenic, that has some of the chemical properties of a metal Metallsaite (German f.) metal string metallverarbeitende Industrie (German f.) metalworking industry Metalófono (Spanish m.) metallophone Metalophone (English) synonymous with 'metallophone' Métalophone (French m.) metallophone Metalurgia (Spanish f.) metallurgy metalúrgico (Spanish) metallurgical metamórfico (Spanish) metamorphic metamorfosear (Spanish) to transform Metamorfosis (Spanish f.) metamorphosis Metamorphosis (s.), Metamorphoses (pl.) (Greek) a transformation, a complete change of appearance, form, condition or nature Metamorphosis of themes or 'thematic metamorphosis', the process of thematic modification so that it retains its essential characteristics, most closely associated with Franz Liszt (1811-1886) who used in a similar way to Richard Wagner's use of leitmotif Metano (Spanish m.) methane Metaphor a rhetorical trope, the application of a name or description to something to which it is not literally applicable (e.g. a glaring error), an instance of this. A particularly unusual metaphor that requires some explanation on the writer's part is often called a metaphysical conceit. The subject (first item) in a metaphoric statement is known as the tenor. The combination of two different metaphors into a single, awkward image is called a "mixed metaphor" or abusio Literary Terms and Definitions Metaphorik (German f.) the study of metaphor metaphorisch (German) metaphoric Metaphysical conceit see 'metaphor' Metaphysical poets a loose group of British lyric poets of the seventeenth century, who shared an interest in metaphysical concerns and a common way of investigating them. The label "metaphysical" was given much later by Samuel Johnson in his Life of Cowley. These poets themselves did not form a school or start a movement; most of them did not even know or read each other. Their style was characterized by wit, subtle argumentations, "metaphysical conceits", and/or an unusual simile or metaphor such as in Andrew Marvell's comparison of the soul with a drop of dew. Several metaphysical poets, especially John Donne, were influenced by neo-Platonism. One of the primary Platonic concepts found in metaphysical poetry is the idea that the perfection of beauty in the beloved acted as a remembrance of perfect beauty in the eternal realm. In a famous definition Georg Lukács, the Hungarian Marxist aesthetist, described the school's common trait of "looking beyond the palpable" and "attempting to erase one's own image from the mirror in front so that it should reflect the not-now and not-here" as foreshadowing existentialism (as quoted in The Aesthetics of Georg Lukács by B. Királyfalvi (1975)) Metaphysical poets from which the examples above have been taken Literary Terms and Definitions Metaplasmus a type of neologism in which misspelling a word creates a rhetorical effect Literary Terms and Definitions from which this extract has been taken Metapoetry poetry about poetry, especially self-conscious poems that pun on objects or items associated with writing or creating poetry Literary Terms and Definitions from which this extract has been taken Metastasio (Metastasio is the Greek equivalent of Trapassi) Italian librettist whose work formed the basis of opera seria. Born Pietro Antonio Domenico Bonaventura Trapassi (3 Jan. 1698, Rome), his early education was arranged by his godfather, Cardinal Pietro Ottoboni. In 1712, at the age of 14, Pietro wrote his first work, a tragedy, Giustino, conceived in imitation of ancient models. In 1720 he wrote his first stage work intended for a musical setting, Angelica e Medoro, for the birthday of the Habsburg emperor, Charles VI and in 1723 he wrote his first opera libretto, Siface re di Numidia, which was brought to the stage in a setting by Feo. The text was a reworking of Domenico David's La forza del virtù. His first original opera libretto was Didone abbandonata, written in 1724. It was set to music by Sarro and launched his career in Naples. His 27 opera seria librettos written between 1723 and 1771 were set by over 300 composers during a span of over 100 years that stretches well into the nineteenth century. Metastasio's librettos share several fundamental characteristics. The plots concern six or seven characters of royal or noble birth who are involved in complex relationships and dilemmas. The dramas are in three acts, each act an average of twelve scenes. A series of scenes is often linked by a character common to all of them (liaison de scène). Each of the first two acts end with a climactic, unresolved scene, and the following act begins where the action left off. He died in Vienna on 12 Apr. 1782 Metatarsiano (Spanish m.) metatarsal Metátesis (Spanish f.) metathesis Metathesis (s.), Metatheses (pl.) (Greek) in linguistics, the transposition of two sounds or letters in a word. The process has shaped many English words historically. Bird in English was once bryd, run was once irnan, horse was hros Metathesis from which the examples above have been taken Literary Terms and Definitions met de rechter hand te spelen (Dutch) M.D., main droite, play with the right hand Metedura de pata (Spanish f.) blunder Metempsychosis (s.), Metempsychoses (pl.) (Latin, from the Greek) the transmigration of souls, the passage of a soul at death into a new body, either human or animal me tendré que aguantarse (Spanish) I'll just have to put up with it meteórico (Spanish) meteoric Meteoro (Spanish m.) meteorite Meteorologia (Spanish f.) meteorology (the study of the weather) meteorológico (Spanish) meteorological (pertaining to the weather) Meteorólogo (Spanish m.) meteorologist Métèque (French) a person living in a country not his own, a resident alien (always with a contemptuous connotation) Meter or 'metre', the organisation of music or literary compositions into units of accented and unaccented beats. Literary compositions written in meter are said to be in verse. In music, duple time alternates accented and unaccented beats, while triple time, an accented beat is followed by two unaccented beats. Meter is actually what is heard and is not the same as a time signature, which is what is written. Although a 'time signature' is called a 'meter signature' it is not the meter itself in music, there are three kinds of meter: simple in simple meter, each beat is normally subdivided into two parts, and the note receiving the beat is always a standard note value (i.e. a crotchet (quarter note), etc.) compound in compound meter, each beat is normally subdivided into three parts, and the note receiving the beat is always a dotted note value (i.e. a dotted crotchet ( dotted quarter note), etc.) This is because a dotted note value may always be easily divided into three equal notes (i.e. a dotted crotchet (quarter note) = 3 quavers (eighth notes)) asymmetrical asymmetrical meters have an odd number of subdivisions, which means that the bar (measure) cannot be divided into equal beats. This type of meter is easy to recognize, since the top number is an odd number that is indivisible by 3 (i.e. 5, 7, 11, 13, etc.) Time Signature Rhythm and Meter in Tonal Music: A Biblography and Glossary of Terms Metre (music) Meter (poetry) Literary Terms and Definitions see 'Spanish poetic meter', 'French poetic meter', 'German poetic meter' meter (Spanish) to place, to deposit, to score (a goal), to involve, to make (to cause) meter baza (Spanish) to interfere meter bolas (Spanish) to tell fibs meter en el mismo saco (Spanish) to lump together meter la pata (Spanish) to put one's foot in it (colloquial) Meter, odd see 'odd meter' meterse (Spanish) to get, to meddle meterse con uno (Spanish) to pick a fight with someone Meter signature also called 'time signature', an indication of the meter of a musical composition, usually presented in the form of a fraction - the lower number indicates the unit of measurement, and the upper number indicates the number of units that make up a bar (measure) Time Signature/Meter Signature met gedempte stem (Dutch) sotto voce met halve stem (Dutch) with half the power of the voice Metheglin spiced or medicated mead, popular in Wales Method in music, a method is a kind of textbook for a specified musical instrument or a selected problem of playing a certain instrument. A method usually contains fingering charts or tablatures, etc., scales and numerous different exercises, sometimes also simple etudes, in different keys, in ascending order as to difficulty (= in methodical progression) or with a focus on isolated aspects like fluency, rhythm, dynamics, articulation and the like. Sometimes there are even recital pieces, also with accompaniment Method from which this extract has been taken Method acting an acting style in which the ideal of a "true" (or "real") moment or impulse is valued most highly and in which the actors try to feel the emotions of the character so that the actors' choices and the characters' would be as one. This style was pioneered by Konstantin Stanislavski and is currently taught most formally at The Actor's Studio in Manhattan. Many if not most modern teachers have moved away from the original (Stanislavskian ) "method" as it is very difficult to teach well. It has been altered by many secondary and tertiary disciples in the 1960s and 1970s to suit individual agendas, and may produce seemingly uninteresting results in younger actors Method acting Methode (German f.) method, course, system, school, treatise, manual Méthode (French f.) method, course, system, school, treatise, manual Methwold Fruit Farm Colony [1889-1917] founded by Robert Goodrich, a 160 acre Norfolk smallholding scheme. Plots averaged 4 acres each, with little brick-built or wooden cottages. Land was used intensively, with a wide variety of fruit, flowers and vegetables, together with chickens and bees. Diet was primarily vegetarian. Goods not consumed within the colony were sent directly to consumers in London. In 1912 a Post Office was set up and the colony's name was changed to Brookville. Goodrich died in 1917 and with him went the last vestigeof the colony's idealistic days Meticulosidad (Spanish f.) meticulousness meticuloso (Spanish) meticulous Metido (Spanish m.) reprimand metido en años (Spanish) getting on (in years) Métier (French) a profession, vocation or calling, an occupation in which a person has a special interest or skill in painting, the term is applied to a subject with which an artist has a special connection (for example, George Stubbs and horses) Metilo (Spanish m.) methyl Métis (m.), Métisse (f.) (French) a person born to parents who belong to different groups defined by visible physical differences, regarded as racial. The term is of French origin, and also is a cognate of mestizo in Spanish. In the Western Hemisphere, this term usually is used to describe someone born or descended from the union of a European and an Amerindian. However, the term has been used by other groups around the world, mostly in countries which were under French influence such as Vietnam and is still commonly used by Francophones today Métis from which this entry has been taken met linke hand te spelen (Dutch) M.S., mano sinistra play with the left hand met nadruk (Dutch) accented Metobelus in textual criticism, a mark that looks much like our modern colon : (two dots one above the other), used to indicate the end of a spurious reading or reading metódico (Spanish) methodical Metodismo (Spanish m.) Methodism Metodista (Spanish m./f.) Methodist Metodo (Italian m.) method, course, system, school, treatise, manual Método (Spanish m.) method, course, system, school, treatise, manual Método de construcción (s.), Métodos de construcción (pl.) (Spanish m.) method of construction Metodologia (Spanish f.) methodology Método matemático (Spanish m.) mathematical method, mathematical system Métodos anticonceptivos (Spamish m.pl.) methods of contraception Metomentodo (Spanish m.) busybody Metonimia (Italian f.) metonymy Metonomasia (Italian f.) change of name Metonym any specific use or specific example of metonymy, or any symbol in which a specific physical object is used as a vague suggestive symbol for a more general idea Metonymy the rhetorical or metaphorical substitution of a one thing for another based on their association or proximity, for example the application of the word gamut, originally the lowest note of a music scale as defined by Guido d'Arezzo, to the whole scale or to the range of an instrument Metraggio (Italian m.) length (in metres) Metraje (Spanish m.) length de largo metraje (Spanish: feature) Metralla (Spanish f.) shrapnel Metralleta (Spanish f.) sub-machine gun Metre see 'meter' Metre, English Hymn see 'English hymn metre' Métrica (Spanish f.) meter, metrics Métrica irregular (Spanish f.) irregular meter Metrical written in meter Metrical accent see 'accent' Metrical foot see 'foot' Metrical psalm a biblical psalm translated into (English) verse, either "close fitting" or loose, as, for example, All People That on Earth Do Dwell (Psalm 100, Isaac Watts) or The Lord's My Shepherd, I'll Not Want (Psalm 23, Scottish Psalter, 1650) Metrical Psalmody Metrical psalmody see 'metrical psalm' Metrical psalter a kind of Bible translation: a paraphrase of all or part of the Book of Psalms in vernacular poetry, meant to be sung as hymns in a church. The composition of metrical psalters was a large enterprise of the Protestant Reformation, especially in its Calvinist manifestation Metrical psalter from which this extract has been taken Metrical substitution a way of varying poetic meter by taking a single foot of the normal meter and replacing it with a foot of different meter Métrica regular (Spanish f.) regular meter Metri causa (Latin) (an emendation in a text, made) for the sake of the metre, to correct a fault in the metre Metric line named according to the number of "feet" in it, so that it is tetrameter if it has four feet, a pentameter if it has five feet, a hexameter if it has six feet, and so on. English verse tends to be pentameter, French verse tetrameter, and Greek verse, hexameter. When scanning a line, we might, for instance, describe the line as "iambic pentameter" (having five feet, with each foot tending to be a light syllable followed by heavy syllable), or "trochaic tetrameter" (having four feet, with each foot tending to be a long syllable followed by a short syllable) This is a list of the various verse structures: monometer one foot dimeter two feet trimeter three feet tetrameter four feet pentameter five feet hexameter six feet heptameter seven feet octameter eight feet nonameter nine feet Literary Terms and Definitions from which this information has been taken Metric modulation also called 'tempo modulation', the method of changing tempos precisely by making some note value in the first tempo equal to a different note value (or at least a different proportion of the beat) in the second tempo, used first by Elliott Carter (b. 1908) Metric modulation Metrico (Italian m.) metrics metrico (Italian) metric, metrical (verse, etc.) métrico (Spanish) metric, metrical (verse, etc.) Metrics the description of text in terms of how it is spoken. When two sentences are metrically identical, they both have the same number of syllables. However, when we say that two stanzas are metrically identical, then both the sentences and the syllables of the stanzas pair up with one another, and a melody created for one also fits the other Metric structure metric structure includes metre, tempo, and all rhythmic aspects which produce temporal regularity or structure, against which the foreground details or durational patterns are projected Metric structure from which this extract has been taken Metrik (German f.) meter, the study of meter Métrique (French) time signature metrisch (German) metrical Metro (Italian m.) meter, metre, tape measure (Spanish m.) metre, meter, underground, subway (US) Metro cuadrado (Spanish m.) cubic metre Metro cubico (Italian m.) cubic metre Metronom (German m., Danish, Swedish) metronome Metronome (English, Italian) Metronom (German), métronome (French), a mechanical or electronic device for establishing the tempo of a piece of music three metronomes set at speeds of 40, 100 and 232 beats per minutes (BpM) are used by Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) at the beginning of his opera L'Heure Espagnole A Short History of Metronomes Metronome Software for Windows 95, 98, XP Weird Metronome Software by David Johnston Metronome Metronome marking exact tempo indication usually as beats per minute, also denoted M.M, Mälzels Metronom, named after Johann Nepomuk Mäzel (1772-1838) who introduced the first successful mechanical metronome in 1815 Metronome Marks Métronome (French m.) metronome Metronomi (Finnish) metronome Metrónomo (Spanish m.) metronome Metrônomo (Portuguese) metronome Metronomo (Italian m.) metronome Metronoom (Dutch) metronome metronoom aanduiding (Dutch) metronome marking Metronomangabe (German f.) metronome marking Metronomangivelse (Swedish) metronome marking Metronomtal (Danish) metronome marking Metronomiosoitus (Finnish) metronome marking Metropolitan a bishop with authority over a group of territorially contiguous dioceses and their bishops; also known as an archbishop Metro quadrato (Italian m.) square metre Metrum (Latin, Dutch, German n.) meter, time-signature (German n.) versification Poetic terminology met stemverheffing (Dutch) raising the voice Metallsaite (German f.) metal string, corda di metallo (Italian f.), corde métallique (French f.) Mette (German) Matins, morning service mettere (Italian) to put, to place, to lay, to set, to stake, to put on, to cause, to compare, to charge, to draw, to thrust, to turn, to put forth, to lead, to suppose mettere a picca (Italian) to provoke, to irritate mettere in atto (Italian) to put into action mettere in musica (Italian) to set to music mettere ... in musica (Italian) to set ... to music mettere la sordina (Italian) to put on the mute mettersi (Italian) to put oneself, to get into, to enter, to enter into, to begin, to start, to set in, to set out mettersi in comunicazione con (Italian) to get in touch with mettersi in contatto con ... (Italian) to get through to ... Metteur au point (French m.) one who makes a problem clear, or who sheds new light upon it Metteur en scène (French m.) the designer of the staging and production of a play, the stage-manager of some dramatic event mettez (French, literally 'put!') in organ playing, an instruction to bring a stop into play mettez sourd. abbreviation of mettez la sourdine (French: insert mute) Mettibocca (Italian m.) meddler, meddlesome talker Mettilore (Italian m.) a gilder Mettimale (Italian m.) mischief-maker, scandel-monger Mettiscandali (Italian m.) mischief-maker, scandel-monger Mettitore (Italian m.) putter, placer, gamester, punter Mettons que ... (French) Let's say that ... Suppose that... mettre (French) to put mettre ... heures à faire (French) to take ... hours to do something mettre à jour (French) to update mettre à la casse (French) to scrap mettre à l'épreuve (French) to put to the test mettre ... à plat (French) to lay ... down flat mettre à sac (French) to ransack (a house), to sack (a city) mettre au défi (French) to challenge mettre au jour (French) to uncover, to bring into the light mettre ... au pas (French) to bring ... in line mettre ... au pied du mur (French) to corner ... mettre aux enchères (French) to sell by auction mettre bas (French) to give birth, to give birth to mettre beaucoup de soin à faire (French) to take great care in doing something mettre dans le bain (French) to drop in it, to put in the picture (figurative) mettre dans le même sac (French) to to lump together mettre ... debout (French) to stand ... up mettre dehors (French) to put out mettre de l'ardeur à faire ... (French) to do ... eagerly mettre de l'argent dans (French) to put money into mettre de l'argent de côté (French) to lay money aside mettre de l'argent pour (French) to pay for mettre de l'argent sur (French) to spend money on mettre des queues aux zéros (French) to overcharge mettre ... droit (French) to set ... straight mettre du temps (à faire ...) (French) to take time (to do something) mettre en branle (French) to set in motion mettre en chantier (French) to get under way, to start mettre en chômage technique (French) to lay off mettre en commun (French) to share mettre en danger (French) to endanger mettre en demeure de (French) to order to mettre en désordre (French) to make untidy mettre en évidence (French) to highlight mettre en gage (French) to pawn mettre en musique (French) to set to music, to put to music mettre en quarantaine (French) to put in quarantine, to quarantine, to send to Coventry (figurative: to ostracise) mettre en quartiers (French) to tear to pieces mettre en relief (French) to bring out, to enhance, to accentuate mettre ... en veilleuse (French) to put ... on the back burner (to temporarily suspend work on a project) mettre la radio (French) to turn the radio on mettre la sourdine (French) to to mute mettre la table (French) to set the table mettre le cap sur (French) to steer a course for mettre la table (French) to set the table mettre le réveil (French) to set the alarm mettre le verrou (French) to bolt the door mettre l'eau à la bouche de ... (French) to make ...'s mouth water mettre les bouts (French) to skedaddle, to scarper (colloquial) mettre les informations (French) to turn the news on mettre les pieds dans le plat (French) to make a blunder, to do something stupid mettre les voiles (French) Get lost! (colloquial) mettre ... parmi les grands (French) to rank ... among the greats, to rate ... among the greats mettre son espoir dans (French) to pin one's hopes on mettre tous ses oeufs dans le même panier (French) to put all of one's eggs in one basket mettre un mot dans la bouche de ... (French) to put a word into ...'s mouth Metzger, Heinz-Klaus (1932-) a German music critic and theoretician Heinz-Klaus Metzger from which this information has been taken Meunier (m.), Meunière (f.) (French) miller, miller's wife (f.) Meunière (French f.) referring to a style of cooking whereby a food (usually fish) is sautéed simply in butter, white wine, and garlic Meurtre (French m.) murder Meurtrier (m.), Meurtrière (f.) (French) murderer, murderess (f.) meurtrier (m.), meurtrière (f.) (French) deadly Meurtrière (French f.) a small loophole in a castle wall so designed that defenders can fire on attackers from under cover Meut (French f.) (troup) pack Mevlevis a mystical order established in Konya, Turkey, in the thirteenth century who cultivated music and included famous composers and theorists. The order spread into parts of Syria, Iraq, and North Africa and transmitted various instrumental and possibly vocal and dance forms throughout the region Mexicain (m.), Mexicaine (f.) (French) Mexican mexicain (m.), mexicaine (f.) (French) Mexican Mexican bean a dried bean, usually between 12 and 14 inches long, that, when shaken, produces a dry staccatro rattle Mexican Hat dance see jarábe tapatio Mexican hip hop Mexican hip hop Mexican marimba see maderas que cantan, las Mexican son related to Cuban son montuno and Venezuelan joropo, Mexican son first appeared as rural music in the eighteenth century. Despite the similarity in name, it is historically and characteristically distinct from, Cuban son montuno. There are many popular styles including mariachi. Mexican son involves audience participation for zapateado, or foot-stamping performed as a counter-rhythm to the band Music of Mexico from which this information has been taken Mexican traditional music Mexico has a great variety of musical traditions and styles. Mariachi music with its trumpets and violins is the most well-known internationally. There are also many regional folk styles which include: the son jarocho from coastal Veracruz, which usually features a harp. (La Bamba was originally a son jarocho); the son huasteco, a fiddle tradition from north-eastern Mexico; marimba music from southern Mexico; and the corridos and rancheras of northern Mexico Mexican vihuela a plucked instrument of the guitar family popular in parts of Spanish America, similar but unrelated to the Spanish Renaissance vihuela, that includes a belly for added resonance and five single courses of strings. Standard tuning: A-D-G-B-E, where the ADG are tuned one octave above a guitar Mexican violin see mariachi Mey the Turkish name for the Armenian duduk, a small oboe from eastern Anatolia Mey Mey Meyer-Eppler, Werner (1913-1960) physicist, experimental acoustician, phoneticist, and information theorist who after the second world war turned his attention increasingly to phonetics and speech synthesis. In 1947 he was recruited by Paul Menzerath to the faculty of the Phonetic Institute of the University of Bonn, where he became Scientific Assistant on 1 April 1949. During this time, Meyer-Eppler published essays on synthetic language production and presented American inventions like the Coder, the Vocoder, the Visible Speech Machine. He contributed to the development of the Electrolarynx, which is still used today for the speech-impaired. In 1949 Meyer-Eppler published a book promoting the idea of producing music by purely electronic means (Meyer-Eppler 1949), and in 1951 joined the sound engineer/composer Robert Beyer and the composer/musicologist/journalist Herbert Eimert in a successful proposal to the Nordwestdeutscher Rundfunk (NWDR) for the establishment of an electronic-music studio in Cologne Werner Meyer-Eppler from which this information has been taken Meyjana a form of Palestinian popular song Mez abbreviation of Mezzosopran (German), mezzo-soprano, mezzosoprano (French) mez. abbreviation of mezzo (Italian: half) Mezavolta (Italian) in fifteenth-century dance, a half turn round. This term describes both a turn step that lasts one misura and a simple pivot step that could be attached to the end of another step and takes no counts Mezcolanza (Spanish f.) hodgepodge, hotchpotch Mezé (Modern Greek from Turkish) a titbit served as an appetizer with a drink Mezoved North African bagpipe Mezozeugma an alternative spelling of mesozeugma Mezrab finger pick used to play the sitar shaped mallet used to play the santur Mezza (Italian f.) half, half-hour, half share, short cue (billiards) see mezzo Mezza bravura (Italian f.) a song of medium or moderate difficulty, as regards its execution Mezzalana (s.), Mezzelane (pl.) (Italian f.) linsey-wolsey, a material that is half wool and half cotton Mezzaluna (s.), Mezzelune (pl.) (Italian f.) crescent, half-moon, cleaver, curved knife, lunette (architecture) (Italian f.) or cappello cinese, bell tree, chapeau chinoise Mezza manica (Italian f.) half-shift (on a fingerboard) Mezza misure (Italian f.) half measures Mezzana (Italian f.) flat tile or flooring brick, side of bacon, mizzen (sail), go-between, procuress (Italian f.) the middle string of a lute Mezzanino (Italian m.) entresol, mezzanine (floor) Mezzano (Italian m.) go-between, procurer mezzano (Italian) mean, middle, middle-sized, middle-class Mezzanotte (Italian f.) midnight Mezza orchestra (Italian f.) half the number of strings usually found in an orchestra Mezzatinta (Italian f.) half-tint Mezza verià (Italian f.) half truth mezzavia (Italian) half-way Mezza voce (Italian f., literally 'half voice') or mezzo voce, sing in a quiet, restrained manner, the equivalent in French is à mi-voix, in German mit halber Stimme the French equivalent in the 18th century, à demi or à demi voix, also applied to both vocal and instrumental music strictly, the correct form is a mezza voce (Italian: at half voice) but this is now never used Mezzetino (Italian) also Mezzetin (French) or Mezzettino (Italian), a character from the Commedia dell'Arte and is considered by Duchartre to be a variant on the stock character Brighella. His name means "half-measure (of liquor)" in Medieval Italian, and he is sometimes called in French and English plays Mezzetin. He first appeared in the sixteenth century Mezzetta (Italian f.) a vessel holding half a litre or half a pint Mezzina (Italian f.) jug, pitcher mezzo (m.), mezza (f.) (Italian) half, medium, middle, for example, mezzo-soprano, a female voice lying between soprano and contralto that, in the nineteenth century, replaced the 'castrato voice' which had a very similar range Mezzobusto (Italian m.) bust, head & shoulders, half-length portrait mezzo carattere (Italian) a moderate degree of expression and execution Mezzocolore (Italian m.) neutral colour Mezzo-contralto a voice with a range that lies slightly lower than a mezzo-soprano but not as low as a contralto Mezzodi (Italian m.) noon, midday, south mezzo forte (Italian) or mezzoforte (Italian), moderately louder, between forte and piano (loud and soft) with mezzo forte being a little louder than mezzo piano, in German halblaut or mittelstark, in French mi-fort mezzoforte (Spanish, Italian) mezzo forte mezzo forte piano (Italian) rather loud then soft Mezzogiorno (Italian m.) noon, midday, south Mezzogravure an intaglio printing process, develped in 1910, designed for use with a rotary press that produces prints with a fine deep tonal range as in mezzotints mezzolano (Italian) mediocre, middling mezzo legato (Italian) less legato than legato itself Mezzo lutto (Italian f.) half mourning Mezzo mando (Italian m.) see 'mandolin, mandoline' Mezzo manico (Italian m.) the half-shift or second position, on a string instrument, for example, the violin or the viol (although the term was used by some commentators for position other than the first, in which case the term refers to a manner of playing out of first position, than to any position in particular) Mezzombra (Italian f.) half-tone (painting) Mezzo morto (Italian f.) half dead mezzo piano (Italian) or mezzopiano (Italian), moderately soft, between forte (Italian: loud) and piano (Italian: soft) with mezzo piano being a little quieter than mezzo forte, the equivalent terms being halbleise or mittelleise in German, and mi-doux in French mezzopiano (Spanish, Italian) mezzo piano mezzo punto (Italian) a sixteenth/seventeenth-century Italian pitch (believed to lie between a'=465 and a'=460 Hz) used mainly as an instrumental pitch. The German equivalent, CammerThon, was associated with court entertainments including dinners Mezz'ora (Italian) half an hour Mezzo rilievo (Italian m.) or mezzo relievo, half-relief, demi-relief (art), sculpture in which the figures project half their true proportion from the surface Mezzosopraan (Dutch) mezzo-soprano Mezzosopraano (Finnish) mezzo-soprano Mezzosopran (German m., Danish, Swedish) mezzo-sopraano Mezzo-soprano (Italian m., literally 'half soprano') a voice having a compass somewhere between soprano and contralto, a voice that differs from the soprano by missing some of the higher notes and with a darker tone quality, the normal range is from A below middle C (a) to the F an eleventh above middle C (f"). The terms Dugazon and Galli-Marié are sometimes used to refer to light mezzo sopranos, after the names of famous singers Mezzo-soprano Voice Definitions and Ranges Mezzo-soprano (English, French m.) mezzo-soprano Mezzosoprano (Spanish) mezzo-soprano Mezzo-soprano castrato a castrato with a mezzo-soprano range Mezzo-soprano clef chiave di mezzosoprano (Italian f.), Mezzosopranschlüssel (German m.), clé d'ut 2e (French f.), clef d'ut 2e (French f.), clé de mezzo-soprano (French f.), clef de mezzo-soprano (French f.), clave de do en segunda (Spanish f.), clave de mezzosoprano (Spanish f.) a 'so-called' C clef Mezzo-soprano Clef Mezzosopranschlüssel (German m.) mezzo-soprano clef mezzo staccatissimo (Italian) an effect less than staccatissimo, it is signified by a staccatissimo mark over or under the notehead which lies under a slur Mezzo staccatissimo marking   the mezzo staccato marking when placed over a single note, a short horizontal line over a staccatissimo mark both over the notehead mezzo staccato (Italian) an effect less than staccato, it is signified by a dot over or under the notehead which is placed under a slur Mezzo staccato marking   the mezzo staccato marking when placed over a single note, a short horizontal line over a staccato dot both over the notehead Mezzo tenore (Italian m.) a male voice similar to a baritone Mezzotermine (Italian m.) expedient, make-shift, compromise, subterfuge, evasion Mezzotint an engraving in which A heavy curved blade with a serrated edge, known as a rocker, is worked across the plate by rocking and pushing. The fine indentations (lines of small incised dots) produce the velvety ground characteristic of mezzotint, which show no hard lines. When the entire surface of the plate is covered with near parallel lines a new set of lines are rocked onto the surface in another direction. This step is repeated to create at least six different directional sets of lines so when completed no discernible lines can be seen. The rest of the design is worked in by scraping and burnishing. This surface is very delicate and it cannot be used for commercial printing. Its textural surface however is alluded to in other look-a-like printing methodologies mezzo tuono (Italian) a semitone, a half-tone Mezzo vestito (Italian f.) half dressed, half clad Mezzovino (Italian m.) thin wine, wine and water mezzo voce or mezza voce, sing in a quiet, restrained manner, the equivalent in French is à mi-voix mezzovoce (Spanish) mezzo voce Mezzuccio (Italian m.) make-shift, mean device