cantilena means A vocal melody or instrumental passage in a smooth, lyrical style. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 86 out of 100.
cantilena is pronounced /kæntɪˈleɪnə/.
Why “cantilena” is a great word
A vocal melody or instrumental passage performed in a smooth, lyrical, and song-like style. From the Italian or Latin cantilēna (“refrain, song”), itself likely derived from Latin cantus (“song”). First attested in English use circa 1740. Unlike an aria, which is a formal, operatic set-piece, or a recitative, which advances plot in speech-like declamation, a cantilena is pure, unbound melodic essence. It is the cello’s lament in a late quartet, the arching line a soprano hums at dusk, or the violin’s sustained note hanging in the air long after the bow has lifted—a brief, beautiful argument against silence.
Etymology
Borrowed from Italian or Latin cantilēna.
noun
- A vocal melody or instrumental passage in a smooth, lyrical style.“He played a lazy tune that sinuated from C sharp down to G natural and back again. Astonishing that he could flute so lazy a cantilena while chasing nymphs.”
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