You can expect just about any musical term or symbol to crop up in a grade six music theory exam!
Here is a list of terms, organised into groups. However, it’s almost impossible to make a “complete” list of terms for this level.
Make sure you also know everything listed under grade five.
Always check the meaning of any new term you come across when you are playing music.
Jump to the Quiz!
1. Tempo – from very slow to very fast
| Italian | |||
| Larghissimo | Very, very slow | Andantino | At a moderate walking pace |
| Grave | Slow and solemn | Moderato | Moderately |
| Lento | Slowly | Allegretto | Moderately fast |
| Largo | Broadly | Allegro | Fast and bright |
| Larghetto | Rather broadly | Vivace | Fast and lively |
| Adagio | Slow and stately | Vivacissimo | Very fast and lively |
| Adagietto | Rather slow | Presto | Very fast |
| Andante | At a walking pace | Prestissimo | Extremely fast |
| French | |||
| Grave | Slowly and solemnly | Rapide | Fast |
| Lent | Slowly | Vif | Lively |
| Modéré | Moderately | Vite | Fast |
| German | |||
| Langsam | Slowly | Lebhaft | Lively |
| Mässig | Moderately | Rasch | Quickly |
| Bewegt | Animated | Schnell | Fast |
2. Changes in tempo
| Italian | |||
| Accelerando | Speeding up | Allargando | Growing broader |
| Doppio movimento | Twice as fast | Calando | Going slower |
| Più mosso | More movement | Meno mosso | Less movement |
| Precipitando | Hurrying | Rallentando | Gradually slowing |
| Stretto | In a faster tempo | Ritardando | Slowing |
| Stringendo | Pressing on faster | Ritenuto | Slightly slower |
| French | |||
| Plus vite | Faster | Moins vite | Less fast |
3. Mood
| Italian | |||
| Affettuoso | With feeling | Lamentoso | Mournfully |
| Agitato | Agitated | Leggero | Lightly |
| Appassionato | Passionately | Maestoso | Majestically |
| Animato | Animated | Malinconico | Melancholically |
| Brillante | Sparkling | Marcato | Marked |
| Bravura | Boldly | Marziale | In a military style |
| Cantabile | In a singing style | Mesto | Sadly |
| Dolce | Sweetly | Morendo | Dying |
| Energico | Energetically | Nobilmente | Nobly |
| Eroico | Heroically | Patetico | With emotion |
| Espressivo | Expressively | Pesante | Heavily |
| Furioso | Angrily | Saltando | Jumpingly |
| Giocoso | Merrily | Scherzando | Playfully |
| Gioioso | Joyfully | Sostenuto | Sustained |
| Grandioso | Grandly | Tenerezza | Tenderness |
| Grazioso | Gracefully | Tranquillamente | Calmly |
| Lacrimoso | Sadly | Trionfante | Triumphantly |
4. Bowing Directions
There are a lot of different ways a string player can use a bow.
The more common bowing instructions should be learnt for grade six music theory:
| Bowing Directions | |
| Arco | With the bow |
| Spiccato | Bounce the bow |
| Sul ponticello | Play near the bridge |
| Con sordino | With the mute |
 | Up bow |
| Col legno | With the wood of the bow |
| Tremolo | Move the bow up and down extremely fast |
| Pizzicato | Pluck the strings |
| Senza sordino | Without the mute |
 | Down bow |
5. Other Symbols
The following symbols also need to be learnt:
| Other Symbols | |
 | Arpeggio (broken chord). The lowest note is played first, followed by the second, third etc, in quick succession. |
 | Tremolo (rapidly repeated note). Short diagonal lines across the stem of a note (or notes) show that it should be rapidly repeated. Often you will see “trem.” written above the note as well. A tremolo is a kind of special effect. |
 | Measured semiquavers. This is a shorthand way of writing out semiquavers or other fast notes. The beams show you which note value is intended. Although it looks similar to a tremolo, it doesn’t sound like one. |
 | Glissando or portamento (rapidly play the notes between the two notated). This is sometimes seen in piano or trombone music. The musician plays all the notes in between the two notated notes as fast as possible. |
 | Stopped note. Used for the French horn, this cross instructs the player to move his/her hand further into the instrument’s bell to create a muffled sound. The symbol is a cross or plus sign, over the note affected. |