KS2 DIGITAL MUSIC & SOUND    VOCABULARY​

Basic Vocabulary 

Sound – A noise made by an instrument or object.
Volume – How loud or soft a sound is.
Beat – A steady pulse in music, like a clock ticking.
Rhythm – A pattern of sounds and silences in music.
Tempo – The speed of the music.
Pitch – How high or low a sound is.
Instrument – A tool used to produce music (real or digital).
Pattern – A repeated arrangement of sounds or beats.
Loop – A repeating section of music.
Composition – A piece of music created by arranging sounds and notes.
Save – Storing your work so it’s not lost.
Play – To start the music or sound.
Stop – To end the music or sound.
Edit – Making changes to improve or adjust a musical composition.
Drag and Drop – A method of selecting, moving, and placing sounds or beats.

Intermediate Vocabulary 

Melody – A sequence of notes that is musically satisfying; the tune.
Harmony – When two or more notes are played at the same time to create a pleasing sound.
Dynamics – The volume of the music, ranging from loud to soft.
Timbre – The unique quality or tone of a sound or instrument.
Structure – The organisation of a musical composition (e.g., verse, chorus).
Digital Tool – Software or an application used to create or modify music, such as Incredibox and Isle of Tune.
Time Signature – Indicates how many beats are in each measure/bar of music.
Layering – Combining different sounds or melodies to create depth in music, as you do when adding characters in Incredibox.
Pitch Shift – Changing the pitch of a sound up or down.
Sampling – Taking a small part of an existing sound or music and reusing it in a new composition.
Load – Opening or accessing a saved piece of music.
Record – Capturing sound or music to use in a digital format.
Theremin – An electronic instrument played by moving hands near two antennas to control pitch and volume.
Street Layout – In Isle of Tune, designing roads and objects to trigger sounds.
Trigger – An action or object that sets off a sound or loop, as cars trigger notes in Isle of Tune.

Advanced Vocabulary 

Arrangement – How the different parts of a piece of music are organised.
Chord – A group of notes played together that create harmony.
Pitch Bend – Slightly changing the pitch of a note to give it expression.
Visualisation – Representing music as images or waveforms on a screen.
Export – Saving your finished music in a format to share or play elsewhere.
Automation – Using tools to control changes in volume, tempo, or effects automatically.
Mixing – Balancing different layers of sound to create a final piece.
Equaliser (EQ) – A tool to adjust the balance between different frequencies in a sound.
Synthesiser – A digital or electronic instrument used to create artificial sounds.
Effects (Reverb, Echo) – Modifications added to music to change how it sounds.
Sampling – Advanced use of recordings, manipulating them to fit a new creative purpose.
Theremin – Its use in advanced compositions for its distinct and eerie sound.
Playback Speed – Adjusting how fast or slow music is played, a feature sometimes explored in digital tools.
Format – How a music file is saved, like MP3 or WAV, so it can be used on different devices or programs.