imitate definition of imitate in the Free Online Encyclopedia.

imitation, in music, a device of counterpoint counterpoint, in music, the art of combining melodies each of which is independent though forming part of a homogeneous texture. The term derives from the Latin for "point against point," meaning note against note in referring to the notation of plainsong .
..... Click the link for more information. wherein a phrase or motive is employed successively in more than one voice. The imitation may be exact, the same intervals being repeated at the same or different pitches, or it may be free, in which case numerous types of variation are possible. Imitation was much used in both vocal and instrumental compositions of the 15th and 16th cent. The ricercare, canzone, capriccio, and fantasia—instrumental forms of this period—employed imitation to a great extent and without formal plan. They were forerunners of the fugue. The strictest form of imitation is the canon canon, in music, a type of counterpoint employing the strictest form of imitation . All the voices of a canon have the same melody, beginning at different times. Successive entrances may be at the same or at different pitches.
..... Click the link for more information. . While imitation is found to some extent in the music of nearly all periods, it is of special significance in Renaissance music.

imitation

1. (in contrapuntal or polyphonic music) the repetition of a phrase or figure in one part after its appearance in another, as in a fugue

2. a literary composition that adapts the style of an older work to the writer's own purposes

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imitation
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