concerto
kun-CHAIR´-toh A concerto is a work composed for one or more instrumental soloists and a full orchestra. Concerti (the proper plural), which have three contrasting movements, have been written for […]
Italian
tessitura
tess´-uh-TUR´-uh (Italian, ‘texture’) Tessitura is the range, from lowest to highest note, of a melody, vocal part, or vocal role. For a successful performance, a vocalist’s range must cover the […]
pizzicato
pits´-uh-CAW´-toh (Italian, ‘pinched’) Pizzicato is a technique in which performers of stringed instruments pluck strings, instead of playing them with a bow, in order to produce particular notes. The term […]
staccato
(Italian, ‘detached’) Staccato is a musical technique in which performers play a note, or series of notes, in a quick and choppy manner. Staccato is the opposite of legato, which […]
sfumato
sfoo-MAW´-toh If you’ve ever driven around Los Angeles, you’ve experienced the phenomenon of sfumato. Through the smog, everything takes on a misty, ethereal quality—Golden Arches meld imperceptibly with the San […]
chiaroscuro
key-ah´-roh-SKOO´-roh (Italian claro, ‘light,’ and obscuro, ‘dark’) Chiaroscuro is the technique of juxtaposing bright and dark areas in a painting to create drama, tension, and three-dimensional effects. Paintings in the […]
libretto
luh-BRET´-oh (Italian, ‘little book’) Libretto refers to the words that are sung or spoken in musical works for the theater, including operas, operettas, and oratorios. The author of these words […]
intermezzo
in-ter-METS´-oh (‘interlude’ in Italian) Historically, an intermezzo is any short entertainment, dance, or musical piece performed between the acts of a play or an opera. Today the term is generally […]
Word Watch: consigliere
CONSIGLIERE: used by host Tucker Carlson on Tucker Carlson Tonight, July 8, 2020 Mr. Carlson referred to socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, accused of aiding the late Jeffrey Epstein in sexually abusing […]