fermata

American  

[fer-mah-tuh, fer-mah-tah] / fɛrˈmɑ tə, fɛrˈmɑ tɑ /

noun

Music.

fermatas, plural fermate plural

1. the sustaining of a note, chord, or rest for a duration longer than the indicated time value, with the length of the extension at the performer's discretion.

2. a symbol placed over a note, chord, or rest indicating a fermata.

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fermata British  

/ fəˈmɑːtə /

noun

1. music another word for pause

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• fermatas
  plural
• fermate
  plural

Etymology

Origin of fermata

1875–80; < Italian: stop, pause, noun use of feminine of past participle of fermare to stop < Latin firmāre to make firm. See firm ¹, -ate ¹

Explanation

When playing or singing from sheet music, you may come across a fermata, a symbol that looks a bit like an eye with an eyebrow: 𝄐 . That’s when it’s above the note. Below the note, it’s turned upside down: 𝄑 Fermata is an Italian word for a stop or a pause, from the Latin word fermare, "make firm." A note with a fermata symbol on it is meant to be held longer than its exact value for expressive effect. The length is at the discretion of the conductor or performer, so if you’re in a choir or orchestra, you need to pay close attention to the conductor so you know when to move on from the note.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fermata fermatas fermate

Then, the second fermata is longer than the first one, tied over to an extra bar.

From New York Times ● Mar. 2, 2022

In the fermata rest of the Ninth’s final bar, Frank’s horn still resonated in the mind, still asking: What of odes?

From New York Times ● Feb. 22, 2022

That hold is marked in the score by a fermata, the musical sign that means just keep going.

From Time ● May 25, 2016

But between each verse, the strings freeze in exquisite tension, a fermata sometimes lasting a full thirty seconds—an unheard-of moment of stasis in anything resembling a pop song.

From The New Yorker ● Mar. 10, 2015

When a note has a fermata on it, you hold it for about twice the length of time.”

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin

For this I put fermatas, sudden long-sustained notes in my Allegro.

From On Conducting (Üeber Das Dirigiren) : a Treatise on Style in the Execution of Classical Music, by Dannreuther, Edward

At the same time I sang several of the modern fermatas, which rush up and down and hum like a well-spun peg-top, striking a few villainous chords by way of accompaniment.

From Stories by Foreign Authors: German — Volume 1 by Various

My guides, who saw my mistake, screamed out in Italian, "fermate, fermate!" which means, "stop, stop!"

From Memoirs of the Private Life, Return, and Reign of Napoleon in 1815, Vol. I by Fleury de Chaboulon, Pierre Alexandre Édouard, baron

Mrs. Gold, were those delicious fermate of your own invention?

From Piano and Song How to Teach, How to Learn, and How to Form a Judgment of Musical Performances by Nichols, Mary P.

The outstretched arm and door-curtain are the "fermate."

From Concerning the Spiritual in Art by Sadleir, Michael

If I were permitted to consult my own wishes I would put my violin under my arm when I reach the fermate and say: 'Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached the cadenza.

From How to Listen to Music, 7th ed. Hints and Suggestions to Untaught Lovers of the Art by Krehbiel, Henry Edward