ritornello
Americannoun
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an orchestral interlude between arias, scenes, or acts in 17th-century opera.
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a tutti section in a concerto grosso, aria, etc.
noun
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an orchestral passage between verses of an aria or song
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a ripieno passage in a concerto grosso
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ritornello
1665–75; < Italian, diminutive of ritorno return
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.
The tenor starts out in synch with the ritornello; attempts to assume an independent melodic shape; and then, failing that, tries to join up with the accompaniment again.
From The New Yorker • Dec. 25, 2016
It’s a ritornello, a continual refrain: ‘Be America! Be the future! Take back the narrative of Europe! Compete!’
From The New Yorker • Jun. 22, 2015
A few bars of ritornello after the song.
From Limbo and Other Essays To which is now added Ariadne in Mantua by Lee, Vernon
The opening of the second scene is in structure that of a Handel opera air: we have the ritornello, and presently the same music is repeated as the accompaniment of Wotan's salute to his castle.
From Richard Wagner Composer of Operas by Runciman, John F.
And the mayor began to laugh with that expressionless laugh by which some persons end all their sentences; which may, perhaps, be called the ritornello of their conversation.
From The Deputy of Arcis by Wormeley, Katharine Prescott
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.
