thorough bass

American  

[beys] / beɪs /

noun

Music.

1. figured bass.

2. continuo.

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thorough bass British  

/ beɪs /

noun

1. 1. Also called: basso continuo.   continuo.  (esp during the baroque period) a bass part underlying a piece of concerted music. It is played on a keyboard instrument, usually supported by a cello, viola da gamba, etc See also figured bass

   2. ( as modifier )

      a thorough-bass part

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Etymology

Origin of thorough bass

First recorded in 1655–65

Example Sentences

Not fatigued by his radicalisation of both musical texture and technique, Corelli added another flourish to his work: a musical shorthand called figured bass, or thorough bass, inherited from Monteverdi and universally adopted after him.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

The innovations of the Florentine reformers included also the invention of thorough bass, or the basso continuo, as the Italians call it.

From Some Forerunners of Italian Opera by Henderson, W. J. (William James)

Fanny was not only taught to play the piano in her childhood, in company with Felix, but she was also allowed to receive lessons in thorough bass and the theory of composition.

From Among the Great Masters of Music Scenes in the Lives of Famous Musicians by Rowlands, Walter

The thorough bass of the dear master has simplified all that.

From Diderot and the Encyclopædists Volume II. by Morley, John

"Well, she's not a duffer at thorough bass anyway," Rosa put in.

From The Beth Book Being a Study of the Life of Elizabeth Caldwell Maclure, a Woman of Genius by Grand, Sarah