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Glite Dictionary
monody

monody

9.9
A song for one singer played on one instrument
  • noun
  • /ˈmɒnədi/
  • Specialized
translation icon : monodía
  • The singer performed a beautiful monody accompanied by a soft piano.

This horrified Darwin, and as I say, he thought he couldn't believe in a beneficent God who could create the igne monody.

Examples

  • In her latest album, she included a monody that showcases her vocal range.

  • That's different from both "monody"—a single voice—and "homophony," which is multiple voices but only one melody (think chords or accompaniment).

    Blog text (32)

  • Predecessors of the later baroque monody included the poets of the Pléiade, particularly Baïf, who tried to introduce quantitative metre into French poetry.

    Blog text (24)

  • The monody was heartfelt, capturing the emotions of loneliness and longing.

Synonyms

monophony
vsmonody
  • Specialized
9.9

A single melody sung or played without any harmony

is usually performed with instrumental accompaniment
monophonic music
vsmonody
  • Specialized
6.6

Music with a single melody and no harmony

is usually performed with instrumental accompaniment

Antonyms

duet
22 2.7

A musical piece for two singers or players

polyphony
  • Specialized
1 8.6

Music with several different melodies heard at the same time

How Many

choir
153 1.5
quartet
30 3.5
trio
18 3.3
duet
22 2.7
monody
  • Specialized
9.9

Surface Forms

monody singular
monodies plural

Morphology

monody = ode (semi-transparent) = mono + ody

The word is historically built with mono- 'single' and a song/ode element, but the technical musical sense is not fully predictable for most learners.

Etymology

Monody comes from the Greek parts mono- meaning 'single' and oide meaning 'song'. So a monody is a 'single song', a musical piece for one voice, usually with instruments.