legato

American  

[luh-gah-toh, le-gah-taw] / ləˈgɑ toʊ, lɛˈgɑ tɔ /

adjective

Music.

1. smooth and connected; without breaks between the successive tones.

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legato British  

/ lɪˈɡɑːtəʊ /

adjective

1. to be performed smoothly and connectedly

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noun

1. 1. a style of playing in which no perceptible gaps are left between notes

   2. ( as modifier )

      a legato passage

Other Word Forms

• nonlegato adjective

Etymology

Origin of legato

1805–15; < Italian, past participle of legare < Latin ligāre to bind

Example Sentences

He didn’t just spin legato lines in the searching, conversational Nocturne; he expounded entire legato paragraphs in an eloquent, unbroken stream of consciousness.

From New York Times • May 5, 2023

Alternating between legato and staccato, her tone practically bounced off the harpsichord, and she tumbled gracefully through intricate passagework.

From New York Times • Feb. 13, 2023

Out of that delicately manic lyric, the melody slows, legato: “Yeah, I’m constantly / tryna fight somethin’ that my eyes can’t see ...”

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 10, 2023

For “Eleanor Rigby,” the Beatles recorded versions of Martin’s backup arrangement with a string octet using lush classical vibrato and legato phrasing, but they wisely chose a brusque, woody attack instead.

From New York Times • Oct. 31, 2022

For example, most ballads are sung legato, and most marches are played fairly staccato or marcato, whether they are marked that way or not.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones