| Accompaniment | The music that supports the melody. |
| Articulation | The way the sound is produced. Staccato: short and detached Accent: strongly tonguing the note Legato: smoothly and connected Slur: only tongue the first of more than one note Tie: two or more of the same notes connected |
| Brass | Trumpet, trombone, tuba, French horn, Sousaphone, baritone, and euphonium. This category of instruments is usually made of brass, silver, gold, nickel, or a combination of metals. These instruments also have valves, keys, or a slide. Players buzz the lips into a conical- shaped, metal mouthpiece to make the sound. |
| Duet | Two players playing together. |
| Dynamics | The intensity of the sound made by any instrument. p = piano = soft mp = mezzo piano = medium soft mf = mezzo forte = medium loud f = forte = loud ff = fortissimo = very loud sfz = sfzortsondo = suddenly loud |
| Embouchure | The way the lips are shaped against the mouthpiece to make the sound on any wind instrument. |
| Ensemble | Several players playing together. |
| Ligature | The mechanism used to hold a reed to a mouthpiece on woodwind instruments. |
| Melody | The main, most important part of the music. |
| Percussion | Snare drum, bass drum, bells, xylophone, piano, triangle, cymbals, tympani, tambourine, and many others. This category includes any instrument that a player hits, strikes, or shakes to make sound. These are the oldest of all instruments used today. |
| Position | The correct posture and placement of the hands, fingers, and body to play any given instrument. |
| Practice Strategies | The frequency of practice increases the development of the musicianship on any instrument. First and second year players need to practice almost every day. Practice should include a short review of familiar music. 80% of practice time should be spent on newer, challenging music. |
| Quartet | Four players playing together. |
| Rhythm | The organization of the beats and/or the notes and length of the sound or silence. |
| Tempo | The speed of the music. Presto: very fast Andante: medium fast Adagio: slowly Largo: very slowly |
| Trio | Three players playing together. |
| Woodwinds | Flute, clarinet, bassoon, oboe, saxophone, and recorder. This category includes any instrument that has a mouthpiece that one blows across and/or a reed is used to make the sound. |
