madrigalist

9.9

A person who sings or writes short Renaissance songs for small groups

noun
/ˈmædrɪɡəlɪst/

Specialized

: madrigalista

Many famous madrigalists emerged during the Renaissance.

Examples

The choir included a renowned madrigalist who specialized in sixteenth-century music.
Several famous madrigalists composed works that are still performed today.
As a talented madrigalist, she performed Renaissance songs at the festival.
The madrigalist performed beautifully at the concert.
As a talented madrigalist, she performed exquisite Renaissance songs at the festival.
Several famous madrigalists created enchanting pieces that are still celebrated today.
The choir featured a distinguished madrigalist known for her interpretations of sixteenth-century compositions.

Synonyms

songster

vsmadrigalist

Archaic

1 6.0

A person who sings or writes music

is specific to a particular Renaissance vocal form

melodist

vsmadrigalist

7.7

A person who writes or performs tunes

focuses on a specific Renaissance vocal form rather than general melodic work

Surface Forms

madrigalist singular

madrigalists plural

Morphology

madrigalist = madrigal (transparent) = madrigal + ist

Formed by the productive agentive suffix '-ist' added to the noun 'madrigal', yielding 'a person associated with madrigals'.

Etymology

Madrigalist comes from madrigal, an old Italian word for a 'short song' from the Renaissance, and the ending -ist, which means 'someone who does something' as in pianist. So a madrigalist is a person who sings or composes these old songs.