absolute music

American  

noun

1. instrumental music, as a concerto or string quartet, that draws no inspiration from or makes no reference to a text, program, visual image, or title and that exists solely in terms of its musical form, structure, and elements.

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absolute music British  

noun

1. music that is not designed to depict or evoke any scene or event Compare programme music

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Etymology

Origin of absolute music

First recorded in 1885–90

Compare meaning

How does absolute-music compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• program music vs. absolute music

Example Sentences

Is it a piece of absolute music, a symphony in the tradition of Bruckner and Mahler?

From New York Times

Korngold admitted that listeners might hear the terrors of Nazism in it, but still insisted that it should be seen as “pure, absolute music, with no program whatsoever.”

From New York Times

When Korngold returned to absolute music, it was to slay the same old dragons, though atonality had hardly achieved popular acceptance in the interim.

From New York Times

“A purist may say that music represented in film is not absolute music. Well, that may be true,” says Williams.

From Seattle Times

Morricone is best known for his film work, but we must never forget his large catalog of “absolute” music — his classical compositions.

From New York Times