Born: February 26, 1770, PragueDied: May 28, 1836, Paris (age 66)
glossary
allegretto—moderately quick tempo. slower than allegro but faster than andante
allegro [I]—fast, lively tempo. From the Italian word for cheerful or gay.
andante [I]—moderately slow tempo (e.g. walking). Faster than adagio but slower than allegretto
chamber music, Kammermusik [G], musique de chambre [F], musica da camera [I], musica cameralis [L]—"Classical Music" for a small ensemble, generally 8 or fewer players with a canonical emphasis on 3-6 players. explore
finale [I], final [F]—The final movement, sometimes explicitly titled thus
minuet, menuet [F], Menuett [G], menuetto [I], minuetto [I]—A graceful, courtly French dance of the Baroque and Classical period with a triple meter and a moderate tempo.It was introduced at the court of Louis XIV. In classical forms such as the symphony or chamber music, the minuet evolved into the more vigorous scherzo.
opus [L], opera[pl], Op., Opp, WoO, Op. posth—work, as in a work of art. For unique identification, publishers/composers often assign an "opus number", abbreviated as "Op." (e.g. Op. 1). A range of works by opus number, uses the plural "opp." (e.g. "Opp. 1-3"). A single opus number may refer to a collection of works (e.g. a set of quartets) giving rise to designations like "Op. 1, No. 4". For misc. works without opus numbers, "WoO" is often used (e.g."Without Opus"). Posthumously assigned numbers may use "Op. posth". Opus numbers may not precisely reflect chronology (publication vs. composition), can be erroneous, sparse or duplicative. Thus, the works of some historically important composers may use separate catalog numbers (e.g. Bach, Haydn, Schubert). See wiki
presto—very fast, more so than allegro.
sostenuto [I], soutenu [F]—sustained, perhaps a bit slow
string quintet, quintette à cordes [F], quintetto d'archi [I], Streichquintett [G], quinteto de cuerdas [S]—ensemble (work) for 5 string players, the string quartet plus guest. The additional instrument might be a viola, cello or bass. The most common choices are named: Viola Quintet, Cello Quintet.