recital

American  

[ri-sahyt-l] / rɪˈsaɪt l /

noun

• recitals
  plural

1. a musical entertainment given usually by a single performer or by a performer and one or more accompanists.

2. a similar entertainment in a field other than music.

   a dance recital.

3. a program or concert by dance or music students to demonstrate their achievements or progress.

4. an act or instance of reciting.

5. a formal or public delivery of something memorized.

6. a detailed statement.

7. an account, narrative, or description.

   He gave a recital of the things he'd been doing since we'd last seen him.

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recital British  

/ rɪˈsaɪtəl /

noun

1. a musical performance by a soloist or soloists Compare concert

2. the act of reciting or repeating something learned or prepared

3. an account, narration, or description

4. a detailed statement of facts, figures, etc

5. (often plural) law the preliminary statement in a deed showing the reason for its existence and leading up to and explaining the operative part

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Synonym Usage

See narrative.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonrecital
  noun
• prerecital
  noun
• recitalist
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• recitals
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of recital

First recorded in 1505–15; recite + -al ²

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Explanation

The hardest part about piano lessons is having to give a recital, or to demonstrate what you've learned in front of an audience. You can also use the noun recital to describe the telling of a story. Your uncle might be famous for boring people at parties with his recital of youthful Boy Scout adventures, for example. In the 1500s, recital was strictly a legal term, the "statement of relevant facts," but the musical meaning had come into use by the 1800s. The root is the Latin word recitare, "repeat from memory."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

recital recitals

But make sure you also listen to Lorraine Hunt Lieberson’s Mahler; her live recital at the Ravinia Festival, which shows her versatility from Debussy and Brahms to “Deep River”; her “Troyens”—anything you can find, really.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

He gave his last recital from memory at age 94.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026

Born in California to Polish parents, the musician gave her first recital at the age of four, and debuted with a full orchestra in Paris aged seven.

From BBC ● Apr. 23, 2026

Michael Spyres’ Tristan nicely supplies the vulnerability, while still being strong enough vocally to partner Davidsen, who will give a rare intimate recital at BroadStage in Santa Monica on April 10.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026

She wants to sing some opera song from her last recital for her audition piece.

From "P.S. I Miss You" by Jen Petro-Roy

“You miss out on recitals, baseball games and Christmas,” said Bewley.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026

That means the absence is not only felt physically, missing birthdays, school recitals, and holidays like Father's Day, but also emotionally.

From BBC ● May 23, 2026

Her father had toured the world, performing on cruise ships as well as giving piano recitals at country hotels, but like many others switched careers to help with the war effort after 1939.

From BBC ● Nov. 23, 2025

Those include dance performances by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and recitals by the Metropolitan Opera.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 16, 2025

“I was always a very good pianist when I was younger. Remember all those recitals I had?”

From "Starfish" by Akemi Dawn Bowman

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Related Words

• concert
• musical
• presentation
• reading
• recitation
• rehearsal

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