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O |
| Obbligato | Indispensable, cannot be omitted |
| Opus (Lat.) | A work. A published composition, e.g Symphony No.4 in E minor, Op. 98. Brahms |
| Ossia | Or. The word indicates an alternative version of a passage |
| Ostinato | (lit, obstinate.) Frequently repeated e.g. Basso ostinato a composition in which a bass tune (usually of 4 or 8 bars) is repeated with varied treatment at each repetition |
Ottava
Ott. | Octave |
| Ottava bassa | An octave lower |
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P |
Parlando
Parlante | (lit, speaking.) To be sung in declamatory fashion with particular care for the enunciation of the words |
| Partitur (Ger.) | A full orchestral score |
| Passionato | Passionately |
| Pastorale | In a pastoral style |
| Patetico | With feeling, with pathos |
| Pausa | A rest (see G.P.) |
| Ped. | Depress the right (sustaining) pedal of the piano. The sign * means that the pedal should be released |
| Perdendosi | Dying away |
| Pesante | Heavy, ponderous |
| Piacevole | Pleasing, agreeable |
| Piangevole | Plaintively |
Piano
p | Soft |
Pianissimo
pp or ppp | Very softly |
| Piu | More |
| Piu allegro | Quicker, more lively |
| Piu lento | More slowly |
| Pui mosso | More movement, quicker |
Pizzicato
Pizz. | Plucked (in string music) |
| Plus (Fr.) | More |
| Pochettino | A very little |
| Pochissimo | As small as possible |
| Poco | A little |
| Poco a poco | Little by little |
| Poi | Then |
| Ponticello | The bridge of a violin or similar instrument. Sul ponticello is a direction to string players to play near the bridge |
| Portamento | A term to express the effect produced on a stringed instrument or by the human voice in gliding with extreme smoothness from note to note |
Precipitato
Precipitoso | Precipitately, impetuously |
| Prestissimo | As fast as possible |
| Presto | Very quick |
| Prima volta | First time (1 ma volta) |
| Primo | First |
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Q |
| Quasi | As if, almost |
| Quasi recitativo | Like a recitative |
| Quasi una fantasia | As if it were a fantasia, in the style of a fantasia |
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R |
Rallentando
RaIl. | Becoming gradually slower |
| R.H. (Eng.) | Right hand |
Repetizione
Replica | Repetition |
| Rigoroso | Strictly |
| Rinforzando | Reinforcing, i.e. increased tone on a single note or a small group of notes not strictly a sudden accent |
| Risoluto | Resolute, bold |
| Risvegliato | With increased animation |
Ritardando
Ritard | Gradually slower |
| Ritenuto | Held back |
| Ritmico. | Rhythmically |
| Rubato | Robbed, stolen, taking a portion of the duration from one note or group of notes and adding it to another, so that although the detail varies the length of the phrase is normal |
| Ruhig (Ger.) | Calm |
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