altissimo

[al-tis-uh-moh, ahl-tees-see-maw]

adjective

1. very high.

noun

1. in altissimo, in the second octave above the treble staff.

altissimo

/ ælˈtɪsɪˌməʊ /

adjective

1. (of music) very high in pitch

2. of or relating to the octave commencing on the G lying an octave above the treble clef

noun

1. in the octave commencing an octave above the treble clef

Word History and Origins

Origin of altissimo¹

1810–20; < Italian: literally, highest, equivalent to alt ( o ) high + -issimo superlative suffix

Word History and Origins

Origin of altissimo¹

Italian, literally: highest

Example Sentences

Ms. Aldana has a dry but limpid sound on tenor and an expressive command that stretches into an altissimo register.

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There were free-improvised solos, altissimo saxophone squeals and loud, surging sections, but nothing became chaotic; a sense of space and order subsumed everything else.

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Then there is a story of Corelli’s coming to grief over a passage in Handel’s overture to Il Trionfo del tempo, in which the violins went up to A in altissimo.

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Here her voice soon became a great attraction owing to its extraordinary purity, force, and compass, which extended to G in altissimo.

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The great merits of her voice lie in her staccato effects, chromatic runs,—which she gives with great purity,—and notes in altissimo.

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