| Term | Description |
|---|---|
| Paradiddle | In percussion, the paradiddle is a rudiment consisting of a four-note pattern of the form RLRR or LRLL. |
| Parallel chord | Parallel chords arise when the same intervallic relationship is maintained in adjacent chords moving in parallel motion. This means that each note within the chord rises or falls by the same interval. |
| Parallel harmony | In music harmonic parallelism, also known as harmonic planing or parallel voice leading, is the parallel movement of two or more lines or chords (harmonies). |
| Parallel key | In music, the parallel minor or tonic minor of a particular major key is the minor key with the same tonic; similarly the parallel major has the same tonic as the minor key. |
| Pataflafla | In percussion, a Pataflafla is a rudiment consisting of multiple 4 note alternating patterns with flams on the first and last notes. |
| Pathétique | Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 8 in C minor, op. 13, commonly known as Pathétique, was published in 1799, though written the year before, when the composer was 27 years old. |
| Pentatonic scale | A pentatonic scale is a musical scale with five pitches per octave in contrast to an heptatonic (seven note) scale such as the major scale. |
| Percussion instrument | A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound by being hit with an implement, shaken, rubbed, scraped, or by any other action which sets the object into vibration. |
| Perfect fifth | The perfect fifth or diapente (sometimes abbreviated P5) is a musical interval which is responsible for the most consonant, or stable, of the unison and octave. |
| Perfect fourth | The perfect fourth or diatessaron, abbreviated P4, is one of two commonly occurring musical intervals that span four diatonic scale degrees. A perfect fourth in just intonation corresponds to a pitch ratio of 4:3, or approximately 498 cents, while in equal temperament a perfect fourth is equal to five semitones, or 500 cents. |
| Perfect pitch | Perfect pitch, or absolute pitch, is the ability of a person to identify or recreate a musical note without the benefit of a known reference. |
| Period | A period is a phrase consisting usually of an antecedent and consequent and totaling about 8 measures in length (though this varies depending on meter and tempo). |
| Phasing | In the compositional technique phasing, popularized by composer Steve Reich, the same part (a repetitive phrase) is played on two musical instruments, in steady but not identical tempo. Thus, the two instruments gradually shift out of unison, creating first a slight echo as one instrument plays a little behind the other, then a doubling with each note heard twice, then a complex ringing effect, and eventually coming back through doubling and echo into unison. |
| Phrase | In music a phrase (Greek φράση, sentence, expression) is a section of music that is relatively self contained and coherent over a medium time scale. |
| Piano bar | A piano bar (also known as a piano lounge) consists of a piano or electronic keyboard played by a professional musician, located in a cocktail lounge, bar, hotel lobby, or office building lobby. |
| Piano pedals | Piano pedals are foot-operated levers at the base of a piano which change the instrument's sound in various ways. Modern pianos usually have three pedals, from left to right, the soft pedal (or una corda), the sostenuto pedal, and the sustaining pedal (or damper pedal). |
| Piano quartet | A piano quartet is a musical ensemble consisting of a piano and three other instruments, or a piece written for such a group. In classical music, those other instruments are usually a string trio, that is a violin, viola and cello. |
| Piano quintet | A piano quintet is a chamber musical ensemble made up of one piano and four other instruments, or the name of a piece written for such a group. |
| Piano trio | A piano trio is a group of piano and two other instruments, usually a violin and a cello, or a piece of music written for such a group. |
| Pipe organ tuning | A pipe organ produces sound via hundreds or thousands of organ pipes, each of which produces a single pitch and timbre. The goal of tuning a pipe organ is to adjust the pitch of each pipe so that they all sound in tune with each other. |
| Piston valve | A piston valve is a device used to control the motion of a fluid along a tube or pipe by means of the linear motion of a piston within a chamber or cylinder. |
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