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choir
choir [O.Fr.] 1 A group of singers; traditionally the chorus organized to sing in a church. Usually, Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran choirs are composed of men and boys, but occasionally in these churches and customarily in other Protestant churches men and women form the choir. 2 That division of an organ usually used to accompany the singers, played from the lowest manual on the console. 3 A section of a chorus or orchestra, as the contrasted choirs of polychoral music, or brass choir, woodwind choir. 4 That part of a church reserved for the singers and the officiating clergy in a cathedral or abbey; the same area in a parish church is the chancel: see stall . |
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"choir." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "choir." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-choir.html "choir." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-choir.html |
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choir
choir an organized body of singers performing or leading in the musical parts of a church service; that part of a church appropriated to singers; especially the chancel of a cathedral, minster, or large church.
Choir may also denote a company of angels, especially any of the nine orders in medieval angelology. The word is recorded from Middle English (in form quer, quere), from Old French quer, from Latin chorus. The spelling change in the 17th century, which means that now the older variant quire is found only in the reference in the Book of Common Prayer to ‘Quires and Places where they sing’, was due to association with Latin chorus and modern French choeur. |
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "choir." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "choir." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-choir.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "choir." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-choir.html |
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choir (musical)
choir (musical). A body of singers assisting at Divine Service. As early as the 4th cent. such bodies existed, made up of clerics in minor orders and boys, and by the time of Gregory I (d. 604) the Schola Cantorum seems to have been established. About the 12th cent. polyphony began to supplement the plainsong of the Church and lay singers augmented church choirs. In recent years many churches have replaced or supplemented choirs by informal ‘music groups’ of singers and instrumentalists.
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E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "choir (musical)." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "choir (musical)." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-choirmusical.html E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "choir (musical)." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-choirmusical.html |
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choir
choir / ˈkwīr/ • n. an organized group of singers, typically one that takes part in church services or performs regularly in public: a church choir. ∎ one of two or more subdivisions of such a group performing together. ∎ the part of a cathedral or large church between the altar and the nave, used by the choir and clergy. ∎ a group of instruments of one family playing together: a clarinet choir. |
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"choir." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "choir." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-choir.html "choir." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-choir.html |
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choir
choir Group of singers who perform as a musical unit. The earliest choirs were ecclesiastical and sang the plainsong in church services. From the 10th century onwards, polyphonic composition gradually replaced unharmonized plainsong in liturgical use. In the 16th and 17th centuries, pieces were written for two or more contrasting choirs. The birth of opera marked the development of the secular choir, or chorus. Most modern choirs, apart from some all-male cathedral choirs, are mixed.
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"choir." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "choir." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-choir.html "choir." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-choir.html |
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choir
choir or chorus.
1. A mixed voice choir (or chorus) is one of both women and men. 2. A male voice choir is (usually) of men only, but may be of boys and men. 3. A double choir is one arr. in 2 equal and complete bodies, with a view not merely to singing in 8 parts but also to responsive effects. 4. Architecturally, the choir is that part of a cath. which, in a church other than a cath., is called the chancel. 5. Chorus tends to be used for secular bodies, but there are many exceptions. |
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MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "choir." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "choir." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O76-choir.html MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "choir." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O76-choir.html |
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Choir
Choiran organized company of persons or things; a company of singers; a band or company of dancers; an order or division of angels. See also carol, chorus. Examples: choir of angels, 1667; of cherubim, 1667; of choristers; of cosmical science, 1855; of dancers; of echoes, 1592; of muses, of planets, 1692; of teeth, 1704; of tents, 1382. |
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"Choir." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Choir." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2505300290.html "Choir." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2505300290.html |
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choir
choir †cathedral or collegiate church clergy; body of singers in a church; part of a church appropriated to them XIII; (gen.) organized body of singers XVI. ME. quer(e) — OF. quer (mod. chœur) — L. chorus (see CHORUS). The sp. choir, with assim. to F. and L., was established XVII.
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T. F. HOAD. "choir." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "choir." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-choir.html T. F. HOAD. "choir." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-choir.html |
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choir
choir or quire.
1. Part of a large church appropriated for the singers, with stalls, situated to the liturgical east of the nave, and partially screened. 2. In a cruciform church that part east of the crossing, including choir, presbytery, and sanctuary around the high-altar, wholly or partially screened. |
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JAMES STEVENS CURL. "choir." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JAMES STEVENS CURL. "choir." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O1-choir.html JAMES STEVENS CURL. "choir." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O1-choir.html |
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choir
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E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "choir." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "choir." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-choir.html E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "choir." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-choir.html |
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Choir
Choir. Singers assisting in worship. Known in Christianity from the 4th cent., they customarily sang the music which was too difficult for the congregation.
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JOHN BOWKER. "Choir." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN BOWKER. "Choir." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Choir.html JOHN BOWKER. "Choir." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Choir.html |
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choir
choir
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•homebuyer
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"choir." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "choir." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-choir.html "choir." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-choir.html |
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