arioso

[ahr-ee-oh-soh, ar-, ah-ryaw-saw]

adjective

1. in the manner of an air or melody.

noun

plural

ariosos 

1. an arioso composition or section.

arioso

/ ˌɑːrɪˈəʊzəʊ, ˌæ- /

noun

1. music a recitative with the lyrical quality of an aria

Word History and Origins

Origin of arioso¹

1735–45; < Italian: literally, songlike. See aria, -ose ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of arioso¹

C18: from Italian, from _aria

Example Sentences

Short ariettas and ariosos keep “Serse,” a comic love story, moving along.

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Reviewing the St. Louis premiere for The Times, Anthony Tommasini wrote, “Restless vocal lines shift from plaintive lyrical phrases, to sputtered outbursts, to a style that seems a jazz equivalent of Italianate arioso.”

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Later, that arioso’s darkness returns — a reminder, even a relapse — but is fought off by majestic chords.

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Monteverdi’s writing in the “Vespers” is organized around a dazzling array of what, for him, were old and new forms: hymn, Gregorian chant, polyphony, operatic monody, arioso and embellished virtuoso singing.

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We began with Monteverdi’s “The Coronation of Poppea,” which has long stretches of dramatically charged arioso — a quasi-melodic style that requires crisp delivery of the text.

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