atonality

American

[ay-toh-nal-i-tee] / ˌeɪ toʊˈnæl ɪ ti /

noun

Music.

the absence of key or tonal center.
an atonal principle or style of composition.

atonality British

/ ˌeɪtəʊˈnælɪtɪ, ˌæ- /

noun

absence of or disregard for an established musical key in a composition
the principles of composition embodying this and providing a radical alternative to the diatonic system

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of atonality

First recorded in 1920–25; atonal + -ity

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

atonality

He was known for atonality and his 12-tones technique which departed from conventional harmonies.

From BBC ● Jan. 14, 2025

Ms Barford said Bailey was also "fascinated by" and "deeply knowledgeable about" the sounds his guitar could produce, experimenting with noise, atonality and the set-up of his instrument.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2023

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 ● Nov. 10, 2022

Harmonically, the Seventh forecast a future of atonality.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 25, 2022

Schoenberg’s major innovations consisted of experiments with atonality – music without a central, binding key – and a newly-invented twelve-tone scale of his own creation.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2020

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023