A musical form that consists of two sections, typically labeled as "A" and "B". In performance, these sections are generally played repeatly, resulting "A-A-B-B". The "A" and "B" sections are equally important but contrast with each other, usually through modulations.
Cadenza music usually appears in concertos (a musical form composed of one or several soloists and accompanied by an orchestra), and usually contains virtuoso elements, which are used to demonstrate the outstanding performance skills of the soloist(s).
During the cadenza, the orchestra usually stops playing, the purpose is to keep the audience's attention on the soloist(s).
In early concerto works (such as those of Bach or Mozart), composers usually left the cadenza entirely to the soloist, or even allowed the soloist to improvise on stage to make soloist's personal characteristics are attached on the relevant piece. Starting from the of post-classical concertos (such as Beethoven's concertos), composers would sometimes write the cadenza themselves, one of the purposes is to limit the soloist's characteristics to the structure or spirit of the composition.
Canon mainly refers to a compositional technique which involves the use of counterpoint, where the same melody is played by different voices but each voice introduces the melody at different duration.
As each part introduces the same melody in a different duration, two melodies will appear at the same time since the second part is added (canon sometimes would be composed of two or more voices).
Canon is a typical example of polyphonic music.
Catata is a musical work that mainly composed for vocalist, accompanied by instruments. The Italian word "Catata" originated in the seventeenth century, means "to sing".
The term "Catata" is the opposite of Sonata while "Cantata" is written for vocalist and "Sonata" is written for instrumentalist. Both musical compositions usually consist of multiple movements.
Capriccio (or Caprice) is usually written in a free and irregular style without too much restriction in musical structure. It is usually a short, lively, and virtuosic instrumental piece.
Caprice (or Capriccio) is usually written in a free and irregular style without too much restriction in musical structure. It is usually a short, lively, and virtuosic instrumental piece.
Concerto Grosso is a Baroque-era musical composition that features a small ensemble of solo instruments (the concertino) contrasting with the full orchestra (the ripieno). It was popular in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, and was often used in religious or courtly settings.
Étude is a piece of music that focuses on practicing particular skills. An étude usually focues on just one (or a small number of) performance skill(s).
The difference between an étude and a exercise is that, from the classical period, étude is usually composed with a complete musical structure and designed to be performed; exercise does not have a complete musical structure and is an individual practice focused on one technique.
Gavotte is a fast group dance that originated in French folklore in the 16th century. It became a popular European court dance in the 17th and 18th centuries. Gavotte is typically composed in 4/4 time, begins on the second or third beat of the first measure, and ends on the strong beat. It is usually played with a lively tempo and a joyful or pleasurable manner.
Gigue is a dance form that widely used in classical music. It was a lively and cheerful dance that originated in England, , and became popular in European court dances in the 16th and 17th centuries. Gigue is typically in 6/8 time and usually written in fugal style.
Impromptu refers to the music that is performed spontaneously, often as solo works with a single-movement, particularly for piano.
Before an impromptu is performed/composed, the performer/composer typically does not prepare beforehand, but instead improvises and performs on stage according to their own ideas. Therefore, impromptu pieces are typically highly improvisatory, as the musician is not bound by any constraints and can freely express their ideas.
In music, the term "impromptu" first appeared in 1822 by the Bohemian composer Jan Hugo Voříšek and German composer Heinrich Marschner both used "impromptu" as the title of their piano works. Other well-known impromptu works include those by Schubert (Opuses 90, 142) and Chopin (Opuses 29, 36, 66).
Zarzuela is a form of opera which composed of instrument, voice and spoken dialogue. It is originated in Spain. The history of Zarzuela is longer than Italian opera.
Zarzuela typically has an important philosophical dimension, often using themes such as the soul or mythological stories as the topic of the entire opera.