sonority

noun so·nor·i·ty \ sə-ˈnȯr-ə-tē , -ˈnär- \

Updated on: 27 Apr 2018

Definition of sonority

plural sonorities

1 : the quality or state of being sonorous : resonance

2 : a sonorous tone or speech

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Recent Examples of sonority from the Web

Blocks of sound battle it out through shifting sonorities, punctuated by sharp attacks on drums and cymbals.

— stuart isacoff, WSJ, "Exploring the New World With New Sounds," 20 Apr. 2018
But the murky sounds and tense sonorities that Ms. Thorvaldsdottir creates are at once eerie and beguiling.

— anthony tommasini, New York Times, "Review: An Orchestral Odyssey Through Chaos and Beauty," 5 Apr. 2018
The cello section wasn’t able to always find a uniform sonority.

— peter dobrin, Philly.com, "Despite feathery textures from the 'Swan Lake' pit, orchestra has some work to do," 9 Mar. 2018
Minarelli’s two bagatelles, backed by a few delicate electronic sounds, each put a single individual sonority through its paces.

— joshua kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, "Sounds and syllables do musical dance at the Other Minds Festival," 10 Apr. 2018
Much of that is helped along by the use of the Baroque flute, whose sonorities have a woody luster a modern instrument can’t always match.

— joshua kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, "CD review: Bach, Sonatas for Flute and Harpsichord," 15 Mar. 2018
Tendler offered a focused six-minute study in sonority and its absence.

— mark swed, latimes.com, "At the Broad, exploring Jasper Johns' connection to music (with an assist from John Cage)," 15 Mar. 2018
Having toured with the composer’s leaner Symphony No. 3, Nézet-Séguin approached the second symphony’s lushness with the precise ear for sonority one associates with Ravel (that also served him well recently in the Metropolitan Opera’s Parsifal).

— david patrick stearns, Philly.com, "Philadelphia Orchestra back on the global recording scene with a lush 'Rach 2nd' live from Kimmel," 9 Mar. 2018
The harmonic language of this 1998 work is uncompromisingly dissonant, orchestrated with bracing, powerful sonorities.

— christian hertzog, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Steven Schick amazes in Roberto Sierra's exuberant percussion concerto," 14 Jan. 2018

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

First Known Use of sonority

circa 1623

in the meaning defined at sense 1

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