music dictionary : Y - Yz
 



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y(French) there, on it, on them, in it, in them
(Spanish) and
y.abbreviation of 'yard', 'year', 'young', 'youngest'
Yathe Chinese festal ode, one of the forms of poetry found in the Shi Jing
ya(Spanish) already, now, later, immediately, soon
Ya-ah-ga-wastaNorth-American duct flute
Yabugan(Inner Mongolia) one of the forms of Mongolian quyi known as haolaibao, specifically one in which the singer makes musical sounds with the voice, and then produces words to match a tune. Yabugan is divided into solos and duets, and further into narration, satire, and the singing of praises
yacer(Spanish) to lie
Yacht rocka variation of popular soft rock that peaked between the years of 1976 and 1984
¿ya ha sonado la campana?(Spanish) has the bell gone yet?
ya he publicado con anterioridad(Spanish) I've had my work published before
Yahooa coarse, filthy, smelly, bestial, barbaric, bipedal creature only vaguely resembling a human
the term yahoo has also become a popular outcry or exclamation when a speaker is engaged in something boisterous
Yajnaritual or religious sacrifice
YakKorean three-hole pipe
Yakumogoto(Japan) two-stringed zither devised by Nakayama Kotonushi in 1820 as an instrument for ritual performance. It is placed on a support stand. Both strings are plucked simultaneously with a ryuso (pick) worn on the index finger of the right hand, while pressing the strings against the kan-dokoro (a guide for pitch placement) with a tenkan (tube) worn on the middle finger of the left hand
Y'allternativesee 'alternative country'
Yallyh-dancingwith its roots in 5th millennium B.C. Sharur, this dancing style in characteristic of the Nakhchivan rgion of Azerbaijan. There were over 100 different yallyh-dancing styles, which had been developed over many centuries and passed on from generation to generation. Only about 20 of these styles are still being danced. Some of them are named for a particular village (Garkhun, Kechili, Arynj, Khanagha), while others for the composer of the melody (e.g. Sarkhanyh)
Yamato utaor waka, a genre of Japanese poetry
yámbico(Spanish) iambic, giambico (Italian), iambisch (German), iambique (French)
Yambo(Spanish m.) iambus, giambo (Italian m.), Jambus (German m.), iambe (French m.)
Yambúone of the three most popular forms of Cuban rumba, traditionally performed on the cajones. It is a slow to medium tempo duple meter style and is danced by male-female couples but does not include the vacunáo of the rumba guaguancó
Yamschik(Russian) or yamstchik, the driver of a Russian coach
Yang Gea style of dance very popular in the north China countryside, in which the dancers typically pass a red silk ribbon around their waist and swing the body to music
Yanggeumor yanggum, Korean hammered dulcimer, derived from European dulcimers
Yanggumsee yanggeum
Yangqin(English, German n.) a Chinese hammered dulcimer, also called hudie qin (butterfly-qin), shanmian qin (fan-surface-qin) and daqin (dulcimer). Originating in Persia and Arabia, it entered China sometime towards the end of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). It is played with two hammers. It is important in opera and as a member of instrumental ensembles for its crisp tone quality, wide tonal range as well as chord and quick arpeggio capability. It also has a rich solo repertory
ya no(Spanish) no longer
¡ya no aguanto más!(Spanish) I can't take any more!
ya no es el mismo de antes(Spanish) he's not the same person any more
Yanqui(Spanish m./f.) American, Yank, Yankee
Yaogu(Chinese) Chinese temple or flower drum. The name indicates that the drum is tied to the waist, with gu meaning drum
  • Yaogu from which this information has been taken
YaoqinChinese wind harp
Yaourt(French m.) yoghurt
Yaourtière(French f.) yoghurt maker
ya que(Spanish) since
Yarabi, el(Pacific coast of Ecuador) popular sentimental dance music
YarakiAboriginal term for the didjeridu
Yaravia lament from the Andes
Yard(Old English geard) in theatre architecture during the Renaissance, the yard is the central area open to the area in theatres such as the Globe. Groundlings typically stood in this spot, unlike the more prodigal audience members who paid extra for a seat in the balconies. Admission in the yard in public theatres cost a penny in Shakespeare's day
Yardcorean alternative name for raggacore
YarghulPalestinian drone and chanter double-clarinet
see 'double clarinet'
Yarn(Old English gearn) an informal name for a long, rambling story or anecdote - especially one dealing with adventure or tall-tales
spun thread, especially for knitting, weaving, etc
Yarrowperennial plant, especially milfoil
ya se había amañado a su nueva casa(Spanish) he had already settled into his new home
Yashmak(Arabic) the veil concealing the face below the eyes, worn by Moslem women in public
y así sucesivamente(Spanish) and so on
¡y así es como me lo agradece!(Spanish) and this is all the thanks I get!
Yasl-khani(Iran) improvised songs of humor and satire from Bushehr
YatagaMongolian zither, on which the strings are plucked, constructed as a box with a convex surface and an end bent towards the ground. It is more complex than most of its counterparts. In the past it was a court instrument and the strings symbolized the levels of the palace hierarchy
Yate(Spanish m.) yacht
¡ya te ajustaré las cuentas!(Spanish) I'll get even with you!
ya te avisé(Spanish) I told you so
Yatgasee yataga
ya vamos para allá(Spanish) we're on our way (over)
Yawla kind of ship's boat or sailing- or fishing-boat
Yawnto open the mouth wide and inhale, especially when sleepy or bored
to gape, to be wide open
the act of yawning, a boring idea or activity
Yawnera boring show (colloquial)
Yayli tambur-cümbüssee cümbüs
Yayue(Chinese) Chinese ritual music, some of which has survived in manuscript
Yazhenga bowed zither of the Tang Dynasty (618-907), the precursor to the erhu
y compris(French) including
ydabbreviation of 'yard'
ydsabbreviation of 'yards'
yearb.abbreviation of 'yearbook'
Yearbookan annually published book or journal, especially one containing information or statistics about that year in particular
Yeasta commercial leavening agent containing yeast cells, used to raise the dough in making bread and for fermenting beer, etc.
Yeast extracta mixture of brewers yeast and salt, high in flavour, protein and vitamin B
Yegua(Spanish f.) mare
Yehu(China) a soft-sounding spiked bowed lute
  • Yehu from which this information has been taken
Yeismo(Spanish m.) pronounciation of the Spanish 'll' like the Spanish 'y'
yel.abbreviation of 'yellow'
Yellow brassthe standard alloy of brass used for musical instruments composed of approximately 70% copper and 30% zinc
Yellowingin paper, a process that changes the colour of white paper to yellow or to brown as a result of its interaction with chemical residue left behind from when the paper was manufactured. Only papers made with chemical pulp age this way. However exposure to heat, light, moisture, smoke and other elements can also yellow any paper. Usually a slow process, the speed of yellowing is dependent on the amounts of adverse exposure or their combination
Yelmo(Spanish m.) helmet
Yem.abbreviation of 'Yemen', 'Yemeni'
Yema(Spanish f.) bud, yolk (egg), sweet
Yema del dedo(Spanish f.) fingertip
Yeoman(Middle English yeman) in early Middle English, the term referred to freemen or freeholders, lower-class peasants who had obtained their freedom from serfdom, and as members of the new bourgeoisie were thus free to join guilds, purchase lands, or work as day labourers for hire. The term later came to mean in particular an attendant servant or lesser official who serves in a royal or noble household for paid wages rather than feudal obligations
Yermo(Spanish m.) wasteland
yermo(Spanish) uninhabited, barren (uncultivated)
Yerno(Spanish m.) son-in-law
Yerro(Spanish m.) mistake
yerto(Spanish) stiff
Yeso(Spanish m.) gypsum, plaster
Yeso mate(Spanish m.) plaster of Paris
Yeti(Tibetan) an abominable snowman, a quasi-human creature as yet unidentified said to leave tracks above the snowline in the Himalayas
Yeux(French m. pl., plural of oeil, literally 'eye') eyes, look (figurative: expression)
Yeux bleus(French m. pl.) blue eyes
Yeux bridés(French m. pl.) slit eyes
yeux cernés, les(French) with rings under one's eyes
Yeveyeve is believed to be a 'Stone' or 'Thunder' god that falls from the sky during or after a rainstorm. This religious society is one of the most powerful and secretive among cults in the southeastern Ewe territories of West Africa. Among the Anlo-Ewe, it is also known as xebieso, hu or tohono. Yeve has a strong historical relations with the Yoruba Shango deity of Nigeria and Fon Xevieso of Benin. Yeve music and dance is distinct from other Ewe musical types because of its general structure. It is considered a suite of seven to nine dance forms or movements. Each movement is related to specific phases of worship. The major dance forms or movements include: sovu, husago, sogbadze, afovu and adavu
Yé-yé(French) a pop music style that emerged from Southern Europe in the early 1960s, part of a counterculture inspired by UK and American rock and roll, and became known through the work of French singer-songwriters Serge Gainsbourg and Françoise Hardy
Yew(German Eibe, French If, Dutch Venijnboom, European Species: Taxus baccata: Average Weight: 38 to 48 pounds per cubic foot) a very hard wood that splits poorly due to interlocked grain and is weatherproof. In the Medieval period it was used for carving, fence posts, and bows
Yhdistävä sulkumerkki(Finnish) brace
Yhteissointi(Finnish) harmony
Yid.abbreviation of 'Yiddish'
Yidakididjeridu
Yidaquididjeridu
Yiddish(English, French m.) Ashkenazic Jews, or Ashkenazim, came from Northern and Eastern Europe, and Russia. Yiddish, a combination of medieval German and Hebrew, developed among Ashkenazim around 1100. Trading contacts between communities and periodic migrations in the face of persecution gradually turned Yiddish into a universal language for Northern and Central European Jews. After the early 1800s, the majority of American Jews were Ashkenazim. Much of the food, vocabulary, and culture considered Jewish in the U.S. today is actually Ashkenazic. Yiddish language communities arose in large cities, especially New York, where Yiddish theatre and literature flourished. Isaac Bashevis Singer is probably the most famous American author to write in Yiddish, while Sholem Aleichem wrote Yiddish tales from Russia. At its peak before World War II, 11 million people spoke Yiddish. Today some 5 million Ashkenazim around the world speak Yiddish
Yinqing(China) hand-held bell on the end of a short pole
Yksiäänisesti(Finnish) unison
Yksiäänisyys(Finnish) homophony
Ylidominantti(Finnish) superdominant
Ylinouseva intervalli(Finnish) augmented interval
Ylitoonika(Finnish) supertonic
YMCA abbreviation of 'Young Men's Christian Association'
y mettre la dernière main(French) to put the finishing touches on
Yo(Spanish m.) ego
yo(Spanish) I
y.o.abbreviation of 'years old' (following a number)
y.o.b.abbreviation of 'year of birth'
y.o.d.abbreviation of 'year of death'
Yodel(English, from the German Jodel) also yodle, Tyrolean singing style where the performer alternates frequently between the natural chest voice and falsetto tones
Yodlesee yodel
Yodlera performer who, when singing, alternates frequently between the natural chest voice and falsetto tones
Yodo(Spanish m.) iodine
yo estaba antes(Spanish) I was here first
Yoga(English, German m./n., French m., Italian m., Spanish m.) Hindu system of meditation and asceticism designed to effect reunion with the universal spirit, and its system of physical exercises and breathing control
Yogha letter shape used in writing Middle English. It represented a Germanic, gargling sound in the back of throat no longer used in Modern English, but surviving as an often silent digraph <gh> in words like knight, caught, and laugh
Yoghourt(Turkish) or, in English, yoghurt, fermented sour milk
Yogi(Hindi) a Hindu ascetic, a devotee who practises yoga
Yogur(Spanish m.) yogurt
yo he estado por ahí(Spanish) I've been around there
Yoiksee joik
Yojosee ryuteki
Yokesynonymous with headstock, the more common term in America for the inverted U-shaped frame, formerly wooden but now metal, in which a bell is suspended when it is to be swung
Yokobuesee ryuteki
Yokolee(Montserrat) local name for the ukulele
y.o.m.abbreviation of 'year of marriage'
yo mismo(Spanish) I myself
Yom Kippur(Hebrew) the day of Atonement, the annual Jewish fast observed on the tenth day of the seventh month
Yomkwoa raft zither from the Birom people of Nigeria, made from a number of reeds bound together to form a raft and from which the strings are formed
Yongdo(Korean) four drums placed vertically on a pole, in a criss-cross pattern
Yonggo(Korean) the name given to the chwago when it is used in tae-ch'uita (Korean royal processional music)
yo prefiero ir a mi aire(Spanish) I prefer doing my own thing (colloquial)
Yorksabbreviation of 'Yorkshire'
Yorkshire Bleeps and Bassalso called 'Yorkshire techno', a short-lived (1989-1991) local musical movement in the city of Sheffield in the UK
Yorubaterm used to describe the Nigerian (Yoruba) people, their language, folklore and musical styles. It is one of the most influential African populations in Cuba, the Caribbean and northern South America, particularly the northern regions of Brazil
Yoruba traditional musicYoruba traditional music includes a very wide range of musical expression from drumming to vocal music, to aro, agogo (metal bells), and so on. Much of Yoruba traditional music focuses on the Yoruba orisa, the pantheon of traditional dieties. Much of the music is also used for praise of patrons at a wide range of Yoruba social occasions
yo soy así(Spanish) that's the way I am
Yotsudakesee yotsutake
Yotsutakeor yotsudake, Japanese Okinawan bamboo clappers or castanets
Yotzer (s.), Yotzrim (pl.)(Hebrew) a dance creator or choreographer who selects a particular piece of music, usually Israeli, and arranges a set of steps to fit with that music
Yougoslave(French m./f.) Yugoslavian
yougoslave(French) Yugoslavian
Yougoslavie(French f.) Yugoslavia
Young classicisman idea promulgated by Ferruccio Busoni (1866-1924) that views music as a simultaneous mixture of old and new styles, "the mastery, the sifting and the turning to account of all the gains of previous experiments and their inclusion in strong and beautiful forms". Busoni believed that Liszt's operatic fantasies are different from the "plebeian pot-pourri" and that the transcription is a legitimate art form, because (a) Bach, Beethoven, Liszt, and Brahms wrote quality transcriptions, (b) notation itself is the transcription of an abstract idea, (c) performances are all transcriptions, (d) some great compositions sound like transcriptions, and (e) transcriptions are like variations, which also change original music
Young, John (c.1672-c.1732)a London-based music printer, publisher and instrument maker, of a musical family, was apprenticed to John Clarke (music seller and publisher) and had his own business from c. 1695. On his trade card he styles himself a 'musicall instrument seller'
Young man sonnetsthe first seventeen sonnets in the Shakespearean collection published in 1609
YouyouArabian heavy drum played only by women
Yovoringoa Mandinka wrestling rhythm
yo ya no me asombro por nada(Spanish) nothing surprises me any more
y penser(French) to think of it
yrabbreviation of 'year', 'younger', 'your'
yrbkabbreviation of 'yearbook'
yrlyabbreviation of 'yearly'
yrsabbreviation of 'years', 'yours'
ystabbreviation of 'youngest'
(Chinese) a Chinese scraper, used in Confucian temple workship, carved in the shape of a tiger, the sound of which is produced by scraping it with a split bamboo stick
Yudhishthiraeldest of the Pandava Princes, celebrated for his right conduct
Yue(China) end-blown flute
Yue fuChinese poems composed in a folk song style. The term literally means "music bureau", a reference to the government organization originally charged with collecting or writing the lyrics
  • Yue fu from which this extract has been taken
Yüeh ch'in(Chinese) or yue qin, a Chinese mandolin, with a moon-shaped soundbox (hence its alternative name moon mandolin although the soundbox can be octagonal or hexagonal), and similar to the long-necked ruan with 2 strings normally tuned a 4th or 5th apart, to which two additional strings can be added, tuned in unison with the other 2 strings creating 2 courses, commonly used to accompany performances such as operas and narratives; also known as sixian, moon lute, Chinese lute, moon guitar or moon violin
tuningrange
g-d-g'-d''g-d'''
Yuëh-fu(Chinese, 'music bureau') a form of Chinese poetry in mixed meter and short lines, with a five-word line being most common. The number of stanzas was likewise variable. The conventions of the genre include a monologue or dialogue presented in dramatic form revolving around some misfortune. The name comes from the music bureaus that were a fixture of Chinese decoration. These bureaus contained sheets of popular songs and ballad-type lyrics
Yue-Oper(German f.) Yue opera
Yue operaShaoxing Opera is a relatively new local Chinese opera popular in the southern regions of the Yangtze River. It originated in Shenxian County, Zhejiang Province, which belonged to the Yue State in ancient times, so it was popularly known as Yue Opera. Yue Opera has a history of about 80 years. It was derived from a kind of story-singing. At first, it was performed with a small drum and hardwood clappers for rhythm and later, choral and orchestral accompaniment was added. It drew some musical elements from Shao Opera and subsequently formed its own character
Yue qinsee yüeh ch'in
Yugo(Spanish m.) yoke
Yugoslavo(Spanish m.) Yugoslav
yugoslavo(Spanish) Yugoslav
Yukalong cylindrical drums of Congolese origin
Yukara form of epic poetry from the minority Ainu of the north of Japan. The stories typically involve Kamui, the god of nature, and Pojaumpe, an orphan-warrior
Yun-loor yunluo, Chinese cloud gong, ten small gongs of different pitches suspended in a wooden frame
Yunluo(English, German n.) in German, also Yün-lo, see yun-lo
Yunque(Spanish m.) anvil, enclume (French), Amboß or Amboss (German), incudine (Italian)
Yunta(Spanish f.) yoke
Yuppie(English, French m./f.) young ambitious professional person working in a city (the term is derived from 'young urban professional')
Yurupariritual dance of the Indians of the Brazilian Amazon basin, said to protect the young male dancers against feminine seduction
Yutong(China) long cylindrical drum
yuxtaponer(Spanish) juxtapose
y va que arde(Spanish) and that's enough
YWCAabbreviation of 'Young Women's Christian Association'
YYSacronym for the 'Music Research Institute (of the Chinese Academy of Arts)'

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