Bowing Techniques
The Italian term for a "plucked" string.
Pizzicato
The specific clef read only by violas.
Alto Clef
The white hair on a bow traditionally comes from this animal.
Horse
This Italian term describes the overall speed of a piece of music.
Tempo
The movement of the hand to reach higher notes on the fingerboard.
Shifting
A curved line over notes that tells you to play them in one bow stroke.
Slur
The key signature that has one flat (B-flat)
F Major
This long, wooden part of the instrument is what the strings are pressed against to change their pitch.
The Fingerboard
This specific type of rhythmic silence receives exactly one beat in 4/4 time.
Quarter rest
The term for two players sharing one music stand.
Stand Partners
This term refers to a "bouncing" bow stroke where the bow hair leaves the string between every note.
Spiccato
The key signature with four sharps.
E Major
These small, round pegs located at the tailpiece allow the player to make very precise adjustments to a string's pitch.
Fine Tuners
This is the Italian term for a "walking speed" tempo.
Andante
The term for "gradually getting louder" so the whole section stays together.
Crescendo
The term for playing at the very bottom of the bow.
At the frog
The order of the first four sharps in a key signature.
F, C, G, D
The piece of wood that supports the strings and is held up only by tension.
Bridge
In a 4/4 time signature, this is what the top number specifically tells the musician.
How many beats are in each measure
A symbol that looks like a "V" indicating a specific bow direction.
Up-bow
In this advanced technique, the player rapidly moves the bow back and forth in very short strokes to create a "shimmering" or "trembling" sound effect.
Tremolo
The clef used by cellos and basses when playing in very high registers.
Tenor Clef
Often called the "soul" of the instrument, this small wooden dowel is hidden inside the body and transmits vibrations from the top to the back.
The sound post
This is the total number of beats for three half notes added together.
6 beats
The term for two or more notes played at the same time on a string instrument
Double Stop