art song

American  

noun

1. a song intended primarily to be sung in recital, typically set to a poem, and having subtly interdependent vocal and piano parts.

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Etymology

Origin of art song

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

The art of the so-called art song is a thriving business.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 19, 2026

Both excelled above all else in their songs, leaving behind a major contribution to the American art song literature that has yet to be fully discovered let alone appreciated.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 21, 2022

In this production, tenor Joshua Stewart returns to explore the boundaries between the Great American Songbook, New Orleans jazz and American art song.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 17, 2022

As Kaufmann pointed out at the outset of the evening — which he dedicated to the art of the art song itself — when it comes to lieder, “there is no before and no after.”

From Washington Post • Oct. 18, 2021

Especially also is this true in the realm of lyric song, for, as everybody knows, he practically created the art song as we know and love it.

From Beacon Lights of History, Volume 14 The New Era; A Supplementary Volume, by Recent Writers, as Set Forth in the Preface and Table of Contents by Lord, John