thorough bass

[ beys ]

/ beɪs /

noun Music.

figured bass.

continuo.

Origin of thorough bass

First recorded in 1655–65

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for thorough bass

Herr Neefe has also given him, so far as his other occupations permit, some introduction to the study of thorough-bass.
Beethoven: A Memoir (2nd Ed.)|Elliott Graeme
What counter-part could you expect to your music, blockhead, but a thorough-bass of bastinadoes?
The History of Don Quixote de la Mancha|Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Murer, after speaking of Pfeiffer, continues as follows: Van den Eeden remained his only teacher in thorough-bass.
The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven, Volume I (of 3)|Alexander Wheelock Thayer
The bass part is intended to be figured by the thorough-bass system to indicate the harmonies.
How Music Developed|W. J. Henderson

So far as his duties permitted, Herr Neefe has also given him instruction in thorough-bass.
The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven, Volume I (of 3)|Alexander Wheelock Thayer

British Dictionary definitions for thorough bass

thorough bass

/ (beɪs) /

noun

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, etcSee also figured bass
(as modifier)a thorough-bass part

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

thorough bass

noun Music.

RELATED CONTENT

Nearby words

Origin of thorough bass

Examples from the Web for thorough bass

thorough bass

noun