cadenza

noun ca·den·za \ kə-ˈden-zə \

Updated on: 20 May 2018

Definition of cadenza

1 : a parenthetical flourish in an aria or other solo piece commonly just before a final or other important cadence

2 : a technically brilliant sometimes improvised solo passage toward the close of a concerto

3 : an exceptionally brilliant part of an artistic and especially a literary work

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Recent Examples of cadenza from the Web

The composition breaks from the three-movement concerto model by expanding the traditional cadenza into its own movement.

— jessica rudman, courant.com, "HSO Plays A Superb Shostakovich Program To Two Standing Ovations," 5 May 2018
Thus, the foursome has many of the lyrical and dramatic possibilities of any concerto soloist, though not the agility that one associates with, say, a violinist who leaps into the ozone during the cadenza.

— david patrick stearns, Philly.com, "Philly Grammy winner Jennifer Higdon delights Chicago with a new world premiere, coming here soon," 2 Feb. 2018
Harpist Mindy Cutcher had some genuinely individualistic moves in a cadenza.

— peter dobrin, Philly.com, "Despite feathery textures from the 'Swan Lake' pit, orchestra has some work to do," 9 Mar. 2018
Thursday night, in the middle of Nicola Benedetti’s playing a cadenza in a violin concerto with the Philadelphia Orchestra, a man walked through the ensemble to a spot just inches from the violinist and started playing drums.

— peter dobrin, Philly.com, "Philadelphia Orchestra finds its groove in Wynton Marsalis concerto," 3 Nov. 2017
During a few stretches Mr. Corea took command, especially during an extended cadenza full of jazzy reworkings of the music.

— anthony tommasini, New York Times, "Review: Lang Lang Opens Carnegie Season With a Gershwin Gimmick," 5 Oct. 2017
Goldenthal also contributed a cadenza to the aforementioned Haydn concerto (which went reasonably well) that was a catalog of trumpet effects that have evolved since the Haydn concerto was written in the 18th century.

— david patrick stearns, Philly.com, "Chamber Orchestra starts season with voices in the wilderness," 1 Oct. 2017
If anything in the C-Minor Concerto No. 24, Fray played up the darkness, probing the first movement's shadowy corners, turning in a spectacular cadenza, and bringing heat to a frisky, muscular finale.

— zachary lewis, cleveland.com, "Cleveland Orchestra draws crowd, earnest cheers on resplendent evening at Blossom (review)," 31 July 2017
Denève‘s tempos in Waltz of the Flowers were intriguingly relaxed, starting with a fearlessly expansive reading of the harp cadenza.

— david patrick stearns, Philly.com, "Young pianist shines at orchestra's Mann Center Tchaikovsky show," 20 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'cadenza.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

A concerto is a large piece for an instrumental soloist (usually playing piano or violin) and orchestra. Concertos are often extremely demanding for the soloist, but the most difficult part of all may be the cadenza, when the orchestra drops out completely, leaving the soloist to dazzle the audience with a set of flourishes, often completely original, right before a movement ends. Cadenzas are also heard in many vocal arias, especially those of the 18th century. The word, borrowed from Italian, originally meant "cadence;" thus, the cadenza, even if it lasts for a couple of minutes, is essentially a decoration of the final important harmonic cadence of the piece.

Origin and Etymology of cadenza

Italian, cadence, cadenza

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1783

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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CADENZA Defined for English Language Learners

cadenza

noun

Definition of cadenza for English Language Learners

: a difficult part of a piece of classical music that is performed by only one person near the end of the piece

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