This glossary was made in order to help people who are studying Music Production career and also to know the meaning of technical terms that are used in the career.
I hope it helps you to familiarize yourself in the world of Music Production and the Music's World in general.
Arpeggiator
noun
A MIDI tool that converts any chord into individual notes played consecutively at a specified time. (MIDI information-Analog)
Example: I put in some MIDI chords and with the "Arpeggiator" function I was able to make a melody in my DAW
es: Arpegiador
Audio Interface
noun
Audio interfaces convert microphone and instrument signals into a format your computer and software recognize. The interface also routes audio from your computer out to your headphones and studio monitors.
Example: I use my audio interface to connect my microphone and my computer to record my songs.
es: Interfaz de audio
Beat
noun
Beat, in music, the basic rhythmic unit of a measure, or bar, not to be confused with rhythm as such; nor is the beat necessarily identical with the underlying pulse of a given piece of music, which may extend over more than a single beat.
Example: 1. You make my heart beat faster.
2. Let's make a beat from a Lo-Fi song
es: El Ritmo
BPM
acronym
Beats per minute. It refers to the tempo, measured in the number of beats per minute.
Example: I normally use 120 BPM when I'm creating a song.
es: Pulsos por minuto
Channel
noun
An audio path from a source (such as a plug-in) or input to an output.
Example: I had to create a song from Homework and I had to use 4 channels: one for Beats, one for Pads, Leads, and Drums.
es: Canal
Chords
noun
Chord, in music, three or more single pitches heard simultaneously. They are formed by superimpositions of intervals of a third.
Example: At least 2 chords are needed to form a song. (The most usual chords are Cmaj - Emin - Gmaj and again Cmaj)
es: Acordes
Clap
noun
This is the sound of one or more people clapping their hands. Today, electronic, stylized versions of this sound (like the one used here) are much more common than actual recordings of handclaps.
Example: Claps are very common in Spain's rhythms like flamenco.
es: Palmas
DAW (Digital Audio Workstation)
acronym
Acronym of "Digital Audio Workstation". It is an electronic system dedicated to the recording and editing of digital audio using audio editing software. Logic Pro, Cubase, Ableton Live, FL Studio, and many others are DAWs.
Example: I like Ableton and Fl Studio because they are very useful DAWs.
es: Estación de trabajo de audio digital
Decibel (dB)
noun
The standard measure of loudness. Note that dB is a measure of ratio, always requiring a reference point from which to measure. The most common dB measurements are dBFS (digital audio, where 0dB is clipping) and dB SPL (in acoustics, where 0dB is near silence).
Example: I start to have distortions, If I go from 1 Decibel in my DAW.
es: decibel
Drum
noun
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. A drum is a musical instrument which produces sound by the vibration of a stretched membrane.
Example: I use some drums in my Mesopotamia project song cause they use a lot of percussion.
es: Batería
Echo
noun
A reflection of the sound that reaches the listener with a delay after the direct sound.
Example: 1. Add reverb, echo, change your pitch or even your gender.
2. There was no reply, only the echo of his own voice.
es: Eco
Groove
noun
groove is the sense of an effect ("feel") of changing pattern in a propulsive rhythm or sense of "swing".
Example: Once I get into the groove, I can clean for hours.
es: Ritmos
Hi hat
noun
The hi hat, also called hi-hat or charleston, is one of the basic parts of the drums, consisting of two cymbals of the same size that can be played with sticks and a pedal.
Example: Hi hats are a vital part of drums.
es: charles
Input
noun
The jack or physical location of where a device receives a signal. Also refers to the signal being received by a device, or that it’s the action of receiving.
Example: To connect the guitar cable, I need to plug the cable into the interface input.
es: Entrada
Kick
noun
Bombo
Example: There is no beat that does not have a good kick included.
es: Bombo
Lead
noun and a verb
A lead is generally something in the musical foreground, playing a melody. It is the melody of any song. It could be an instrument or voice.
Example: I would put some Lead if I want to have a melody in my song.
es: Dirigir, la cabeza o guía de algo.
Limiter
noun
A compressor-like audio effect in a ratio of ∞: 1, which means that no audio signal can pass the threshold. The threshold is generally set to 0 dB, which does not allow the audio to distort and allows maximum volume if gain is applied.
Example: The "Limiter" function is very functional because it helps me not to distort my audio when producing music.
es: Limitador
Loop
Noun
In audio it is a sound that continually repeats itself over and over again. It is called a loop because back in the “old days” tapes were used.
Example: I will create a song using a lot of loop of sounds on Ableton.
es: Bucle, repetir, como un círculo
Master
noun
In the music business, a master recording is the official original recording of a song, sound or performance. Also referred to as “masters”, it is the source from which all the later copies are made.
Example: My friend helped me to make the master of my song, now is done to upload on platforms.
es: Master
MIDI (musical instrument digital interface)
noun
Acronym of "musical instrument digital interface". In full musical instrument digital interface, technology standard allows electronic musical instruments to communicate with one another and with computers.
Example: Yesterday I used my MIDI to make a beat.
es: Interfaz Digital de Instrumentos Musicales
MP3
acronym
t is a way of encoding audio using a compression algorithm that generates data loss by reducing the amount of information required to represent an audio recording, but in a way that is very similar to the quality of the original file. MP3 stands for "MPEG Audio Layer-3" and is developed by the Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG)
Example: My cousin told me that he converted his song to MP3 because it is a format that can be played on any digital platform.
es: Capa de Audio-3
Musical Scale
nouns
Scale, in music, any graduated sequence of notes, tones, or intervals dividing what is called an octave.
Example: I made a song with most commune music scale, the Cmaj scale.
es: Escala musical
Pad
noun
A synth pad is a sustained chord or tone generated by a synthesizer, normally used to create a background harmony or atmosphere in the same way that a string section is used in acoustic music. A category of synthesizer patches which produce a soft, pleasing sound.
Example: We are going to use some pads in C major to create an atmosphere of joy in the song.
es: Almohadilla (en la canción)
Plugins
noun
Software that can be used within a DAW to extend its functionality. Includes effects, sound generators, and utility devices. Typical plugins include equalization, dynamic range control, reverberation, delay, and virtual instruments. It is like " extra effects"
Example: I used a some plugins I upload on Web: Reverb, Eco Distortion, Saturation, Limiter and many more, they are so good from my song.
es: Complementos
Reverb
noun
Reverb occurs when a sound hits any hard surface and reflects back to the listener at varying times and amplitudes to create a complex echo, which carries information about that physical space.
Example: The reverberation in my room is a lot, the sound is always reflected and it sounds like in the Church.
es: reverberación
Sample
noun
A pre-existing audio used as sound in a composition. The samples can be any recorded material that is later reused or sequenced.
Example: I used Sample to make a song because my DAW have a lot of them.
es: Muestra
Snare
noun
A snare drum is struck with a drum stick, and produces a short, bright sound. A set of wires (called snares) is stretched across a drum head at the bottom of the drum. The vibration of the bottom drum head against the snares produces the drum's characteristic "cracking" tone.
Example: A snare is used to roll drums.
es: Tarola o caja
Staff
noun
The staff is a set of five lines and four spaces that we used to write music.
Example: We use rhymes to memorize the notes on the staves.
es: Pentagrama
Tap Tempo
noun
This is a control on a time-based device (for example, delay or drum machine) that allows you to play multiple times to determine the tempo at which the device operates.
Example: I bought a "Tap Tempo" to play guitar and loop whatever I play.
es: Pedal
WAV or WAVE
acronym
WAV (Waveform Audio File Format) is a lossless container format that stores uncompressed audio files and includes the PCM audio format. As a result, a WAV format document provides optimal sound quality, even though it consumes the most storage space compared to other audio formats.
Example: I used WAV when converting a song, the sound is more realistic because there is less loss.
