melisma
Americannoun
noun
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Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of melisma
First recorded in 1605–15, melisma is from the Greek word mélisma “song, tune”; see melody, -ism
Explanation
Melisma is a musical term used to describe the technique of singing a single text syllable — like "love" — while moving between several different notes in succession. Melisma, often referred to as "riffing," is a common technique in rhythm and blues. You'll hear it in other types of music, too, including pop, opera, and gospel music. Melisma is often used to showcase a singer's agility and range, or to add flair to a song. You'll sometimes hear singers using melisma on words like "brave" and "free" when singing the U.S. national anthem. The opposite of melisma is syllabic singing, where each syllable of a word gets just one note — think "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star."
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:
He asked permission to try it out in front of the London audience, before drifting into a wordless, intimate melisma.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2024
It seemed, even, like every blistering high note, well-turned melisma and swooning falsetto note was greeted with hums of approval and the occasional shout of “C’mon!”
From New York Times ● Mar. 24, 2023
Her singing too strikes a throwback note, with less of the almost-rapping she was doing in songs like the trappy “7 Rings” and more of the fluid R&B melisma she inherited from Mariah Carey.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2020
But, even beyond Simone’s lyrics, her integrative technique itself—her use of gospel piano, blues melisma, classical riffs—refutes myths of black deprivation.
From The New Yorker ● Aug. 12, 2019
The closing words of each Psalm are chanted more 171 slowly and impressively, a long "triad" being substituted for the "melisma," sung piano.
From Letters of Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy from Italy and Switzerland by Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, Felix
For LeRoy, this idea resonates with the concept of melismas, or a group of notes sung at one syllable that often express a feeling without words, that is also often used in gospel music.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 19, 2022
“We started sending each other mixes,” he said, explaining how snippets of Rosalía’s vocal melismas made their way into his 2021 trap-bolero, “Aquel Nap ZzZz.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 17, 2021
Her phrases swell, tremble and spill over into melismas, and her verses crest with two different peaks.
From New York Times ● Nov. 17, 2021
At many moments he surprised me, despite my repeat viewings, with new melismas and spins on lyrics that sharpened the story to a slightly different point.
From New York Times ● May 23, 2019
Her voice held exhortations, gospel growls, flamboyant melismas, fast hip-hop articulation and melting romance.
From New York Times ● Sep. 27, 2015
On her debut EP, “Finding Foundations, Vol. 1,” Ms. McFerrin shows wonderful vocal dexterity, deftly swerving from sharp, clearly enunciated staccato bursts to fluttery, free-form melismata.
From New York Times ● Mar. 31, 2017
If the repetitions and melismata of his English-text setting owes much to Britte, the level of dissonance in his more static accompaniments is much higher.
From The Guardian ● May 17, 2012
This orchestral treatment was well adapted to music full of cadenzas, vocalises, and melismata of all kinds, and in which tutti were the exception.
From An Autobiography by Stravinsky, Igor
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
