M. Abbreviation of mezzo, mano, main, manual. M. M. stands for Maelzel's metronome, q. v.

Ma (It.)But; as, vivace ma non troppo; quick, but not too quick.

Machalath, or Mahalath (Heb.)This word occurs in the title of Psalms liii. and Ixxxviii., the former is inscribed to the “chief musician upon Mahalath, the latter to the” chief musician upon Mahalath Leannoth.” Mahalath is by some authors traced (like Machol), to a root meaning pierced or bored, hence it is thought these Psalms were accompanied by flutes. It is generally thought that the term leannoth refers to antiphonal singing. Other writers consider the titles of these and several other Psalms to be a reference to Well known tunes to which they were to be sung.

Machine-head. An arrangement of rack and pinion for the purpose of tightening and keeping in tension the strings of the doublebass, and the guitar, as the ordinary pegs employed to stretch the strings are of unequal leverage.

Machicot (Fr.) An obsolete term for one of the chori ministri minores of a cathedral, who in singing, added passing-notes between intervals of the plain-song; or, according to others, added a part to the plain-song at an interval of a third or fourth, thus forming a sort of organum or diaphony. The music thus sung was called machicotage.

Machol, or Mahhol (Heb.) A word often found in the Old Testament, associated with “toph” (timbrel), and almost always rendered in the English version by dances or dancing. But some authorities trace the word to a root meaning pierced or bored, and therefore consider it to have been a flute.