fermata

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fermata

from St. Matthew Passion (1729) by

Johann Sebastian Bach

fer·ma·ta

(fĕr-mä′tə)

n. Music

1. The prolongation of a tone, chord, or rest beyond its indicated time value.

2. The sign indicating this prolongation.

[Italian, from feminine past participle of fermare, to stop, from Latin firmāre, to make firm, from firmus, firm; see dher- in Indo-European roots.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

fermata

(fəˈmɑːtə)

n, pl -tas or -te (-tɪ)

(Music, other) music another word for pause⁵

[from Italian, from fermare to stop, from Latin firmāre to establish; see firm¹]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

fer•ma•ta

(fɛrˈmɑ tə)

n., pl. -tas, -te (-tā). Music.

1. the sustaining of a note, chord, or rest for a duration longer than the indicated time value.

2. the symbol placed over a note, chord, or rest indicating a fermata.

[1875–80; < Italian: stop, pause, n. use of feminine past participle of fermare to stop < Latin firmāre to make firm]

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun	1.	fermata - a musical notation (over a note or chord or rest) that indicates it is to be prolonged by an unspecified amount musical notation - (music) notation used by musicians
	2.	fermata - (music) a prolongation of unspecified length on a note or chord or rest protraction, lengthiness, prolongation, continuation - the consequence of being lengthened in duration music - an artistic form of auditory communication incorporating instrumental or vocal tones in a structured and continuous manner

Translations

koruna

fermaatti

fermata

フェルマータ

fermate

fermata

фермата

References in periodicals archive ?

Reinforce the consonant intervals of the phrase by re-articulating the drone and adding fermatas; then do the same with the dissonances.

The Art and Skills of Learning (New) Music: Lucy Shelton's Practice Guide

Augmenting this gestural feeling, the natural pauses that Diego incorporates into the rhetorical questions in stanzas 2 through 4 and 7 follow the slowing down of the rhythm at the end of the musical phrases in the Chopin, including the two fermatas (holds) at the end of the piece (Diego, Nocturnos de Chopin 41; Chopin, Nocturne 2 21; Vasary):

OTRO PUNTO DE ARRANQUE": GERARDO DIEGO'S HYBRID ROMANCES

In Italian opera, there are fermatas. And in Germany, people come in with no rehearsal at all."

Alexander Prior

All other editorial additions, from fermatas to figures, are indicated with square brackets, even when applied editorially to parallel passages.

Leipzig Church Music from the Sherard Collection: Eight Works by Sebastian Kmipfer, Johann Schelle, and Johann Kuhnau

Also, the addition of courtesy accidentals and rehearsal letters (particularly when there are fermatas in the middle of a block of rests in some of the parts) could help performers in the preparation, though there are measure numbers provided at the ends of each line.

Landscapes for Clarinet, Bassoon, Horn, and Piano by Daniel Baldwin

I have returned to the question of the lacking "free" space--Srnka is evidently capable of building vast, "slow" musical structures at a level significantly higher than, for instance, snail tempo with a host of pretentious fermatas and meaningful pauses.

Miroslav Srnka: South Pole

Rhythmically, students see durations of long notes or fermatas and notice graphic space during rests.

Using multimedia to enhance lessons and recitals: Part I

(49) In this source--a photographic reproduction of the amended "Wallfahrt" passage suggested by Strauss is found in the Sotheby catalogue--the composer separated individual melodic phrases of the "Wallfahrt," in the manner of a Bach chorale, by fermatas. (50) Each fermata then gives rise to what Strauss calls "Passagen," that is, solo passagework for piano left-hand to be supplied by Wittgenstein.

Paul Wittgenstein's voice and Richard Strauss's music: discovering the musical dialogue between composer and performer: to Daniel Ng Yat Chiu (1937-2013) for his generous and ongoing support of music and music research

Then of course there is the very distinct possibility that Chow's interpretation of the intentionally indeterminate Feldman--her marshalling of tempos and fermatas, of sound-mass and chance--was what made this piece so different, so appealing.

Just add rain: Vicky Chow at the Stone, May 29, 2012

There were a number of "fermatas" along the way, and the list showed Negrar as the last stop.

The Rainy Road to Negrar: Searching for Family in Italy

to improvise?; silent time composed to wait, to hear fermatas and rests preceding what comes next.