obbligato

enUK

ob·bli·ga·to

also ob·li·ga·to (ŏb′lĭ-gä′tō)Music adj. Not to be left out; indispensable. Used of an accompaniment that is an integral part of a piece.n. pl. ob·bli·ga·tos or ob·bli·ga·ti (-tē) also ob·li·ga·tos or ob·li·ga·ti An obbligato accompaniment.

[Italian, past participle of obbligare, to obligate, from Latin obligāre, to oblige; see oblige.]

obbligato

(ˌɒblɪˈɡɑːtəʊ) music or

obligato

adj (Classical Music) not to be omitted in performancen, pl -tos or -ti (-tiː) (Classical Music) an essential part in a score: with oboe obbligato. [C18: from Italian, from obbligare to oblige]

ob•bli•ga•to

(ˌɒb lɪˈgɑ toʊ)

adj., n., pl. -tos, -ti (-ti) adj. 1. (used as a musical direction) obligatory; not to be omitted. n. 2. a musical line performed by a single instrument in accompaniment to a solo part. 3. a continuing background motif. [1715–25; < Italian: obliged]

obbligato

essential

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	obbligato - a persistent but subordinate motifobligatomotif, motive - a theme that is repeated or elaborated in a piece of music
	2.	obbligato - a part of the score that must be performed without change or omissionobligatosection, subdivision - a self-contained part of a larger composition (written or musical); "he always turns first to the business section"; "the history of this work is discussed in the next section"

Translations

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 Music1. not to be omitted in performance 2. an essential part in a score

obbligato

ob·bli·ga·to

obbligato

obligato

ob•bli•ga•to

obbligato

obbligato

obbligato

Obbligato

obbligato

obbligato

Synonyms for obbligato

noun a persistent but subordinate motif

Synonyms

Related Words

noun a part of the score that must be performed without change or omission

Synonyms

Related Words