Words at Work: Music 1

The musical world owes much of its vocabulary to the Italian language. Here are just a few words: solo, duet, opera, piano, violin, soprano, tempo, trombone, bravo.

Complete the story with words from the box. You’ve been given the first letter of each word as a hint.

duet opera piano violin soprano tempo trombone bravo solo

The Performance

The lights dimmed as Ms. Condon’s music class began its show. Kenny stood on the stage alone. He lifted his bow and slowly pulled it across the strings of his

v ________________. “Squawk!”

Kenny frowned and began again. This time, a sweet note filled the air. At the end of his s ________________, Kenny took a bow.

Next, two students came on stage. They were Mimi and Sid singing a d _________________. Mimi sang high in a sweet s _____________________ voice. When she hit her highest note, the audience gasped.

“Her voice is just amazing!” someone cried out. “She is sure to be an o _________________ star someday!” Umeko was the next performer. Her fingers seemed to fly over the black and white keys of the grand

p __________________. We noticed that she tapped her foot to the t _________________ of the tune she played.

Finally, little Stevie came out. The tiny boy lifted a big, brass horn to his lips. He could barely reach far enough to pull the slide of the t ________________ in and out.

“B __________________!” shouted the audience at the end of the show.