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obbligato

obbligato [Ital.,=obligatory], in music, originally a term by which a composer indicated that a certain part was indispensable to the music. Obbligato was thus the direct opposite to ad libitum [Lat.,=at will], which indicated that the part so marked was unessential and might be omitted. Misunderstanding of the term obbligato, however, resulted in a reversal of its meaning; when a violin part, for example, is added to a song it is called a violin obbligato, whereas it may be a superfluous ornament for which ad libitum would be a more precise direction.

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"obbligato." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 22 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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obbligato

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology | 1996 | | Â© The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology 1996, originally published by Oxford University Press 1996. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

obbligato (mus.) a part essential to the effect of a composition. XVIII. — It., sb. use of pp. of obbligare OBLIGE.

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T. F. HOAD. "obbligato." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 22 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

T. F. HOAD. "obbligato." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (December 22, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-obbligato.html

T. F. HOAD. "obbligato." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved December 22, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-obbligato.html

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obbligato

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music | 1996 | | Â© The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music 1996, originally published by Oxford University Press 1996. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

obbligato (It.; Fr. obligé; Ger. obligat). Indispensable. Adjective attached to the name of an instr., e.g. ‘vc. obbligato’, where the instr.'s part is obligatory, and special or unusual in effect. To use the term in the opposite sense of optional or ad libitum is wrong, as is the frequently-encountered spelling obligato (favoured by Britten).

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MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "obbligato." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 22 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "obbligato." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (December 22, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O76-obbligato.html

MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "obbligato." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Retrieved December 22, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O76-obbligato.html

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