glissando
[ gli-sahn-doh ]
adjective
performed with a gliding effect by sliding one or more fingers rapidly over the keys of a piano or strings of a harp.
noun,plural glis·san·di [gli-sahn-dee]. /glɪˈsɑn di/.
a glissando passage.
(in string playing) a slide.
Origin of glissando
11870–75; <French gliss(er) to slide + Italian -ando gerund ending
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use glissando in a sentence
The piano in it is put to various uses, with a fill of glissandi matching the diabolic mood.
Franz Liszt | James Huneker
British Dictionary definitions for glissando
glissando
/ (ɡlɪˈsændəʊ) /
nounplural -di (-diː) or -dos
a rapidly executed series of notes on the harp or piano, each note of which is discretely audible
a portamento, esp as executed on the violin, viola, etc
Origin of glissando
1C19: probably Italianized variant of glissade
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
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