obbligato

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obbligato

(ŏbləgä`tō) [Ital.,=obligatory], in music, originally a term by which a composer indicated that a certain part was indispensable to the music. Obbligato was thus the direct opposite to ad libitum [Lat.,=at will], which indicated that the part so marked was unessential and might be omitted. Misunderstanding of the term obbligato, however, resulted in a reversal of its meaning; when a violin part, for example, is added to a song it is called a violin obbligato, whereas it may be a superfluous ornament for which ad libitum would be a more precise direction.

Obbligato

an instrumental part in a musical work that must not be omitted; it is obligatory that it be performed. Obbligato parts can be of varying importance—ranging from those that are significant but still form part of the accompaniment to parts that share equal significance with the featured solo part. In 17th- and 18th-century operas, oratorios, and cantatas (for example, in Bach’s Mass in B Minor) one often encounters arias, and sometimes even duets, with the participation of an obbligato instrument (or several instruments) and the orchestra. The opposite of obbligato is ad libitum (“at will”).

obbligato

, obligato Music

1. not to be omitted in performance

2. an essential part in a score

References in periodicals archive ?

This particular song, with its low tessitura and mirroring of pathetic gestures shared between the voice and obbligato instrument, is a particularly good choice for a mezzo soprano voice with an easy lower extension.

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He requested that I play the third movement obbligato part sitting in front of the orchestra, by the bass section, then move to the back of the hall for the solo horn calls in that movement.

Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 5: an interview with Karl Pituch

NEC has developed an enhanced anti-information leakage function for Obbligato II that will be primarily available in the Chinese market as Obbligato II R9.

Epson Deploys Technology Information Management System in LCD Display Manufacturing Plant in China; NEC's "Obbligato II" Provides Cross-border, Seamlessly Integrated, Secure Data Management

Throughout, mostly chair-bound Gram delivers an obbligato of reminiscences and ditties.

DIGGING ELEVEN

Two of the surrounding trios are scored for violin, viola and obbligato piano, pleasingly conversational music written in the aftermath of J.

C.P.E. Bach: 5 flute sonatas

A sinister obbligato to this trend is the rise of xenophobic feelings, particularly in France and Germany but, as David Cole illustrates below, increasingly in the United States, where a lurid picture is being conjured up of thousands of aliens pouring into New York and other entrepots either to take jobs from Americans or exploit the welfare system or spread terror.

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NEC Corporation, which is a leading supplier of PDM solutions in Japan, designed Obbligato II as a modular and scalable suite of applications that makes it easy for manufacturing organizations to manage drawings, documents and design data, within a single workgroup or across an internationally distributed enterprise.

NEC Systems, Inc. Shows Obbligato II Product Data Management Software Suite at M/TECH '99

Rubbra's Two Sonnets by 16th century poet William Alabaster transformed apparently unpromising knotty religious poems into heightened recitative with Tudor inflexions of harmony and a restless viola obbligato, building in both songs to a moving conclusion of quiet intensity.

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TOKYO, June 10, 2016 - (JCN Newswire) - NEC Corporation (NEC; TSE: 6701) today announced the launch of Obbligato III R4.

NEC Launches New PLM Software Product Obbligato III R4.1

70 and 73, with a superimposed text of Francisco Balagtas' poem Kay Selya, aptly titled Kundiman ni Schumann; and Richard Wagner's song cycle Wesendonck Lieder which the composer transformed into Wesendonck Sonata, enriched by a cello obbligato.

Jeffrey Ching's 'Fusion' enriches music scene

Non temer arnato bene," with its obbligato piano part played by Benedetto Lupo.

Mozart arias

The violin obbligato during the Benedictus was beautifully and sensitively played by Peter Sulski, concertmaster for the evening.