coloratura
- noun
- /ˌkɒləˈrʊtə/
- Specialized
:
coloratura
- His flawless coloratura made the challenging passages sound easy, showcasing his extraordinary vocal talent.
Examples
-
The two and a half hours of coloratura you performed this evening might account for the tiredness.
-
Grace gives every syllable its full coloratura vibrato, closing her eyes and extracting each word from the depths of her very soul: "Sister poets, sister angels, flying like geese in vee formation, not honking but making music...
Fiction book (1998) -
The singer dazzled the audience with her incredible coloratura during the operatic performance.
-
She mastered the art of coloratura, effortlessly hitting the rapid notes and intricate runs in her aria.
Compounds
- Specialized
A singer with a medium-high voice who can sing very fast, fancy notes
- Specialized
A singer with a very high voice who sings many very fast notes that decorate the tune
How Ornate
- Specialized
Surface Forms
Etymology
Coloratura comes from the Italian colorare, which means 'to color' and shares the same root as English color and colorful. Think of a singer 'coloring' a tune with many fast, bright notes and trills, so coloratura names those very fancy singing passages.
