cantabile
[kahn-tah-bi-ley, -bee-, kuh n-; Italian kahn-tah-bee-le]Music.
- songlike and flowing in style.
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- in a cantabile manner.
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Origin of cantabile
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for cantabile
Historical Examples
After the exposition of the subject, the violin has figure-playing of an easy kind, while the violoncello has a Cantabile theme.
Nicolo Paganini: His Life and WorkStephen Samuel Stratton
Trio in D major, Cantabile theme for violin, doubled by the viola in the octave below.
Nicolo Paganini: His Life and WorkStephen Samuel Stratton
He executes the most difficult passages with the most extraordinary ease, and especially pours out his heart in the Cantabile.
The Violoncello and Its HistoryWilhelm Joseph von Wasielewski
Wilhelmj drew from his instrument the noblest sounds I ever heard; not Joachim, not Ysaye excelled him in cantabile.
UnicornsJames Huneker
The cantabile slow movement, modeled somewhat after the Italian cantilena, was his.
A Popular History of the Art of MusicW. S. B. Mathews
cantabile
- (to be performed) in a singing style, i.e. flowingly and melodiously
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- a piece or passage performed in this way
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Word Origin
Italian, from Late Latin cantābilis, from Latin cantāre to sing
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for cantabile
adj.
1724, from Italian, literally "singable, that can be sung," from cantare "to sing" (see chant (v.)).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper