pizzicatoadv.n.adj.
/ˌpɪtsᵻˈkɑːtəʊ/, U.S. /ˌpɪtsəˈkɑdoʊ/ Music.
A. adv.
As a musical direction: with each note played by plucking the strings of a violin, cello, etc., with the finger instead of using the bow. (Abbreviated pizz.) Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > playing instruments > playing stringed instrument > [adverb] > plucked
pizzicato1771
pincé1876
fingerstyle1954
1771 W. Hooper tr. J. F. von Bielfeld Elements Universal Erudition (new ed.) II. 232 Pizzicato is a term that relates to stringed instruments, and shews that a note is to be played without the bow, by pinching the string with the nail or finger.
1784 A. McDonald Independent I. 52 He then took his violin, and ran over pizzicato, the tune which he had been conning.
1806 T. Busby Compl. Dict. Music (ed. 2) Arco,..is frequently used in violin music, in opposition to the term pizzicato, to denote that the bow is again to be used, instead of applying the fingers to the strings.
1885 Athenæum 5 Dec. 740/1 Violas and violoncellos play pizzicato throughout.
1921 W. de la Mare Mem. Midget i. 4 My father..could play pizzicato so softly on his muted fiddle as not to jar even my too sensitive ear.
1926 Amer. Mercury Mar. 289/2 They have, like Speaker Longworth, done the thing pizzicato and with tongue in cheek.
1995 New Yorker 5 June 98/3 And he tends, when he solos pizzicato and attempts complex double-time figures, to lose the beat.
B. n.
A musical note or passage played by plucking the strings of a violin, cello, etc., instead of bowing; this style of playing. Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > type of music > music on specific instrument > [noun] > music on strings > pizzicato passage
pizzicato1790
1790 A. Walker Ideas 162 She answered him affetuoso in such a manner as might have satisfied most husbands; but he expressed his doubts in pizzicato, and she was upon the point of destroying herself.
1845 E. Holmes Life Mozart 119 When they heard me accompany the Pizzicato on the keys.
1885 P. David in G. Grove Dict. Music IV. 295 Who copied with more or less success..his pizzicatos with the left hand.
1975 Gramophone Sept. 471/3 It [sc. a glockenspiel] has a major role in every movement, supported by harp and a good deal of pizzicato.
1990 J. Morrow Only Begotten Daughter (1991) i. iii. 57 Wyvern yanks on the rod, savoring the lovely pizzicato of the hook tearing through the fish's cheek.
1992 Gramophone Jan. 56/1 Mahler's nervy, tentative, yet impatient march is built almost entirely on spiky pizzicatos: but Shaw is too shy by half of the accents which animate them.
C. adj.
Of a musical note, passage, etc.: that is played pizzicato. Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > playing instruments > playing stringed instrument > [adjective] > plucked
pizzicato1880
plucked1881
fingerstyle1934
1880 P. David in G. Grove Dict. Music II. 760/1 Playing a pizzicato accompaniment to a tune played with the bow.
1931 G. Jacob Orchestral Technique ii. 17 Note the effect of the pizzicato chord.
1958 S. Spender Engaged in Writing 24 The pizzicato laughter of seemingly ever awake children.
1993 Classic CD June 7/2 As though barely able to express itself fully, the piano speaks over pizzicato strings.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adv.n.adj.1771