Now updated for CSW19. New words, if any, and new inflections of existing words, are shown in red.
| accompanist accompanyist | one who accompanies another e.g. on the piano. |
| accordionist | one who plays the accordion. |
| alto | orig. the highest adult male voice, properly counter-tenor; now more usually CONTRALTO, a low female voice > ALTOS. |
| altoist | one who takes the ALTO part. |
| bagpiper | one who plays the bagpipes. |
| balladeer | one who sings ballads; (verb) to sing ballads. |
| bandleader bandmaster | the conductor of a band. |
| bandsman | a member of a band of musicians. |
| bandurist | one who plays the bandura. |
| banjoist | one who plays the banjo. |
| baritonal | of or like a BARITONE. |
| baritone baryton barytone | a deep-toned male voice between bass and tenor. |
| bass | a low singing voice (the lowest of all except for basso profundo); one who sings this. |
| bassist | a person who plays a double-bass. |
| basso | the bass or lowest part; as, to sing basso > BASSOS or BASSI. |
| bassoonist | a performer on the bassoon. |
| beatboxer | one who practises beatboxing. |
| bebopper | one who plays BEBOP, a kind of jazz music. |
| bluesman | one who plays the blues. |
| bongoist | one who plays the bongo. |
| bugler | one who plays the bugle. |
| busker | one who entertains esp. by singing or reciting on the street or in a pub. |
| campanologist | a bell-ringer. |
| cantabank | a strolling singer; a second-rate musician. [Ital. cantambanco]. |
| cantatrice | a female singer > CANTATRICI or CANTATRICES. |
| capellmeister kapellmeister | a choir or orchestra leader. |
| caroler caroller | one who sings carols. |
| castrato | a male singer castrated in boyhood to preserve his singing voice; this voice is higher than the counter-tenor and sweeter > CASTRATI. |
| cellist | one who plays a cello. |
| cembalist | one who plays a CEMBALO. |
| chanter chaunter chantor | a singer; a precentor (leader of a choir). |
| chanteuse | a female nightclub singer. |
| chantor | see CHANTER. |
| chantress chauntress | a female CHANTER or singer. |
| charanga | a type of orchestra used to perform Cuban music. |
| chaunter | see CHANTER. |
| chauntress | see CHANTRESS. |
| choirboy | a male member of a choir. |
| choirgirl | a female member of a choir. |
| choirman | one who sings in a choir. |
| choirmaster | the leader of a choir. |
| choralist chorist chorister quirister | a member of a choir. |
| citharist | a player of the cithara, an ancient Greek musical instrument like a lyre. |
| clavecinist | one who plays the clavecin. |
| clavichordist | one who plays the clavichord. |
| clavierist | one who plays the pianoforte. |
| coloratura colorature | a highly ornamented, virtuoso (musical passage); a singer, especially soprano, of such music. |
| combo | a small dance or jazz band > COMBOS. |
| comprimario | a role of secondary importance; a singer or dancer playing such a role > COMPRIMARIOS. |
| concertinist | one who plays the concertina. |
| conductor | one who guides an orchestra. |
| cornerman | the man at the end of the row in a negro-minstrel performance. |
| cornetist cornettist cornist | one who plays the cornet or horn. |
| countertenor | the highest alto male voice (not counting CASTRATO) (so called because a contrast to tenor). |
| crooner | one who croons, i.e. sings softly in a sentimentally contemplative manner. |
| crowder | a fiddler, spec. a player of the 'crowd' or CRWTH. |
| cymbaler cymbalist cymbaleer | one who plays the cymbals. |
| diva | a female opera singer. |
| divo | a male opera singer. |
| drummer | one who plays a drum. |
| duettist | one who takes part in a duet. |
| ensemble | a group of musicians playing together. |
| executant | one who executes or performs; esp., a performer on a musical instrument. |
| fagottist | a bassoon player. |
| falsetto | a high-pitched voice (esp. of an adult male) forced to notes above its natural register; a person who uses such a voice > FALSETTOS. |
| fiddler | one who plays on a fiddle or violin. |
| fifer | one who plays the fife. |
| fingerpick | to play the guitar with fingers rather than a plectrum. |
| flautist fluter flutist | one who plays the flute. |
| flugelhornist | one who plays the FLUGELHORN. |
| folkie folky | a folk musician; a lover of folk music. |
| fuguist | a person who writes or plays FUGUES. |
| funkster | a performer or fan of pop music. |
| gambist | a performer upon the viola di gamba. |
| gleemaiden | a female GLEEMAN. (I regret to report that there seems to be no GLEEPERSON*). |
| gleeman | an itinerant minstrel or musician. |
| gongster | a person who gongs. |
| guitarist | one who plays the guitar. |
| guslar | a performer on the GUSLA, a one-stringed Balkan musical instrument. |
| harmonicist | one who plays a harmonica. |
| harper harpist | one who plays the harp. |
| harpsichordist | one who plays the harpsichord. |
| heldentenor | a TENOR with striking dramatic quality suitable for heroic roles. [G. Held, hero]. |
| hornist | one who plays a horn. |
| improvisator | an improviser. |
| improvisatore improvvisatore | an (Italian) improviser; an improviser in an Italian manner > IMPROVISATORI or IMPROVISATORES; IMPROVVISATORES |
| instrumentalist | one who plays a musical instrument, esp. as opposed to a VOCALIST. |
| jazzer jazzman | a jazz musician. |
| jodel yodel yodle | to sing in a style popular in the Alps. |
| jongleur | a medieval wandering minstrel; a troubadour. |
| kapellmeister | see CAPELLMEISTER. |
| keyboardist | one who plays the keyboard. |
| lutanist lutenist luter lutist | a lute-player. |
| lyrist | a musician who plays on the harp or lyre; a composer of lyrical poetry. |
| madrigalist | one who sings madrigals. |
| manband | an all-male vocal pop group which was formed as a boy band, but whose members have reached maturity. |
| marimbist | one who plays the MARIMBA. |
| melodist | a composer of melodies; a person skilled in melody. |
| mezzo | one who sings mezzo-soprano > MEZZOS. |
| minstrel | a medieval musician, itinerant or attached to a noble household, who sang or recited his own or others' poems, accompanying himself on a stringed instrument. |
| musician | a performer or composer of music, esp. professional. |
| musicianer | a musician. |
| musicker | a musician. |
| muso | a musician > MUSOS. |
| oboist | one who plays the oboe. |
| organist | one who plays the organ. |
| pannist | a person who plays a steel drum. |
| percussionist | one who plays one or more percussion instrument. |
| pianist | one who plays the piano. |
| pianiste | a female PIANIST. |
| pianolist | one who plays the PIANOLA. |
| piccoloist | one who plays the piccolo. |
| pifferaro | one who plays the piffero > PIFFERARI or PIFFERAROS. |
| piper | one who plays the pipes. |
| preluder | a person who plays or performs a prelude. |
| prima | fem. of PRIMO: first, the first or principal part in a duo. |
| prommer | one who attends a PROM. |
| psaltress | a woman who plays the PSALTERY. Oddly, there seems to be no word for a man who plays the PSALTERY. Perhaps the instrument was regarded as a bit PSISSY? |
| punker | a punk rock musician. |
| qawwal | a singer of qawwali, devotional Sufi music. |
| quirister | see CHORALIST. |
| ragtimer | one who plays RAGTIME music. |
| recitalist | one who gives recitals. |
| reedman | one who plays a reed instrument. |
| rhythmist | a person skilled in rhythm. |
| ripienist | a supplementary instrumentalist. |
| sarodist | one who plays the sarod, an Indian instrument like a cello. |
| saxophonist saxist saxman | one who plays the saxophone. |
| scop | an Anglo-Saxon poet and harpist > SCOPAS. |
| scrapegut | a fiddler. |
| septet septuor | a group of seven performers. Also SEPTET. |
| shantyman | the solo singer in shanties. |
| sideman | one of the members of a band other than the leader who does occasional solo passages. |
| siffleur | a (male) professional whistler. |
| siffleuse | a (female) professional whistler. |
| sightsman | one who reads or performs music readily at first sight. |
| singer | one who sings. |
| sitarist | one who plays the SITAR, an Indian musical instrument. |
| solo | a performance by one person > SOLOS or SOLI. |
| songman | a singer, a member of a choir. |
| songsmith | a composer of songs. |
| sopranist | a SOPRANO singer. |
| soprano | the highest singing voice; one who sings in this voice > SOPRANOS or SOPRANI. |
| soulster | a singer of soul music. |
| strummer | one who STRUMS i.e. sound the strings of a guitar etc with the sweep of a hand. |
| succentor | a bass soloist in a choir. |
| symphonist | one who plays or (rarely) conducts symphonies. |
| taborer | one who plays on the TABOR. |
| tabourer | a player on the TABOUR. |
| tabrere | a TABORER, one who plays on the TABOUR. |
| tenor | the adult male voice intermediate between BARITONE and ALTO; one who sings in this voice. |
| tenorino | a high tenor. |
| tenorist | one who sings tenor or plays a tenor instrument. |
| tenorman | a person who plays tenor saxophone. |
| tenour | (obs.) tenor. |
| theorbist | one who plays on a theorbo, a double-necked lute. |
| thrummer | one that THRUMS, strums rhythmically and monotonously. |
| timist | a performer who keeps good time. |
| timpanist | one who plays the TIMPANI. |
| tooter | one who toots; one who plays upon a pipe or horn. |
| tootler | one who tootles, makes feeble sounds on a flute. |
| trombonist | one who plays the trombone. |
| troubadour | any of a class of poet-musicians flourishing especially in southern France and northern Italy during the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries. |
| trumpeter | one who plays the trumpet. |
| tubaist tubist | one who plays the tuba. |
| tunesmith | a songwriter or composer of light music. |
| twanger | a person who or thing which twangs; a person playing a stringed instrument. |
| twangler | one who twangles, sounds with a slack twanging. |
| tweedledee | a fiddler; (verb) to tweedle. |
| tweedler | one who TWEEDLES, plays casually on an instrument. |
| tympanist | one who beats a drum. |
| vibist | a person who plays the vibraphone. |
| vibraphonist | one who plays the vibraphone. |
| violer | a viol player, a fiddler. |
| violinist | one who plays the violin. |
| violinistic | of or like a VIOLINIST. |
| violist | a player on the viol. |
| virginalist | one who plays on a VIRGINAL. |
| virtuosa | a female VIRTUOSO > VIRTUOSE, VIRTUOSAS. |
| virtuosic | exhibiting the qualities of a VIRTUOSO. |
| virtuoso | a person who has special knowledge or skill in the technique of a fine art, esp. music > VIRTUOSOS or VIRTUOSI. |
| vocalist | a singer, as opposed to an INSTRUMENTALIST. |
| xylophonist | one who plays the saxophone. |
| yodel | to sing or shout changing rapidly from normal to falsetto > YODELED/YODELLED. Also YODLE, JODEL. |
| yodeler yodeller yodler | one who yodels, sings or shouts changing rapidly from normal to falsetto. |
| zitherist | one who plays the zither. |