Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A sustained, smooth-flowing melodic line.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun In medieval music: A singing exercise or solfeggio.
- noun A cantus firmus, or melody for church use.
- noun In modern music, a ballad or light popular song.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun (Mus.) See
cantabile .
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun music a vocal melody or instrumental passage in a smooth, lyrical style
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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The beautiful deep-toned, love-laden cantilena, which is profusely and exquisitely ornamented in Chopin's characteristic style, is interrupted by a very impressive recitative of some length, after which the cantilena is heard again.
Frederic Chopin as a Man and Musician Niecks, Frederick 1888
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"Elegy" for cello and piano dates from 1939 (though reconstructed last year), making it the earliest piece on the festival; unlike the Piano Sonata, there's not a whole lot in this solidly Pistonesque cantilena that points to later Carter, but the polish and poise of the piece is breathtaking, yet more evidence that Carter's expressive, "intuitive" side is not easily disengaged from his technical concern.
Magna Carter (7): Either/Or Matthew Guerrieri 2008
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"Elegy" for cello and piano dates from 1939 (though reconstructed last year), making it the earliest piece on the festival; unlike the Piano Sonata, there's not a whole lot in this solidly Pistonesque cantilena that points to later Carter, but the polish and poise of the piece is breathtaking, yet more evidence that Carter's expressive, "intuitive" side is not easily disengaged from his technical concern.
Archive 2008-07-01 Matthew Guerrieri 2008
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Dr. Kissinger apparently doesn't appreciate the considerably rousing power of the traditional cantilena-cabaletta sequence of Italian opera.
Archive 2007-08-01 Matthew Guerrieri 2007
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Dr. Kissinger apparently doesn't appreciate the considerably rousing power of the traditional cantilena-cabaletta sequence of Italian opera.
Unlikely music critic of the day Matthew Guerrieri 2007
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The following category according to Tinctoris was the cantilena or secular song, composed mostly of texts in the vernacular of the country.
Archive 2009-04-01 Lu 2009
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Multus hoc affectu sanat cantilena, laetitia, musica; et quidam sunt quoshaec angent.
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Et semper finem horum mirabilium cantilena subsequitur musicorum.
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Most Italians read verse in a monotonous tone called cantilena that destroys all feeling.
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Et semper finem horum mirabilium cantilena subsequitur musicorum.
The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation 2003
cryptofascistbbq commented on the word cantilena
–noun
a simple, lyric, melodic passage for voice or instrument.
May 20, 2009