W o W - Week of Words - February 2009

The “W o W” word Rhythm (rith-uhm) noun: The general term used to describe how music moves through time. Encompasses terms such as beat, meter, and tempo. The study of rhythm, stress, and pitch in speech is called prosody; it is a topic in linguistics. Narmour (1980, p.147-53) describes three categories of prosodic rules which create rhythmic successions which are additive (same duration repeated), cumulative (short-long), or counter cumulative (long-short). Cumulation is associated with closure or relaxation, counter cumulation with openness or tension, while additive rhythms are open-ended and repetitive. Richard Middleton points out this method cannot account for syncopation and suggests the concept of transformation.
The “W o W” word Libretto (li-bret-oh) noun: The text or words of an opera or similar extended musical composition; a book or booklet containing such a text. A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, ballet etc. A libretto is distinct from a synopsis or scenario of the plot, in that the libretto contains all the words and stage directions, while a synopsis summarizes the plot. The relationship of the librettist (that is, the writer of a libretto) to the composer in the creation of a musical work has varied over the centuries, as have the sources and the writing techniques employed. Libretti for operas, oratorios, etc in the 17th and 18th centuries generally were written by someone other than the composer, often a well-known poet. Metastasio (real name Pietro Trapassi) was one of the most highly regarded librettists in Europe. His libretti were set many times by many different composers. Another noted 18th century librettist was Lorenzo da Ponte, who wrote the libretti for three of Mozart's greatest operas, as well as for many other composers. The libretto is not always written before the music. Some composers wrote passages of music without text and subsequently had the librettist add words to the vocal melody lines.
The “W o W” word Tempo (tem-POH) noun: the speed at which a piece of music is played. In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for time, movement) is the speed or pace of a given piece. It is an extremely crucial element of composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece. The tempo of a piece will typically be written at the start of a piece of music, and in modern music is usually indicated in beats per minute (BPM). The greater the tempo, the larger the number of beats that must be played in a minute is, and, therefore, the faster a piece must be played. Whether a music piece has a mathematical time indication or not, in classical music it is customary to describe the tempo of a piece by one or more words. Some of them are: · Prestissimo — extremely fast (more than 200bpm) · Vivace — lively and fast (≈140 bpm) · Allegro — fast and bright or "march tempo" (120–168 bpm) · Moderato — moderately (108–120 bpm) · Andante — at a walking pace (76–108 bpm) · Adagio — slow and stately (literally, "at ease") (66–76 bpm) · Larghissimo — very very slow (20 bpm and below)

The “W o W” word Leitmotif (lahyt-moh-teef) noun: A motif or theme associated throughout a music drama with a particular person, situation, or idea. It is a frequently recurring bit of melody, usually in opera, associated with a person, thing, or emotion. Leitmotiv is German for “leading theme.” A term associated with Wagnerian musical drama, though the thing itself is at least as old as Mozart. The leitmotif may be heard in the instrumental or the vocal part. The leitmotif must be characteristic of the person or thing it is intended to represent. In the movie, the Slumdog millionaire, “Latika’s theme” echoed through the movie to underscore the love story unfolding between Jamal and Latika.

[Word Powers] Daily Words - February 2009

Jingoism (jin′·go·ism) (Noun): Extremely aggressive and militant patriotism We must be careful to prevent a spirit of jingoism from spreading at this time, the danger of a disastrous war is too great.

Jettison (jĕt'ĭ-sən) (Verb): Throw overboard Inorder to enable the ship to ride safely through the storm, the captain had to jettison much of his cargo.

Vulnerable (vuhl-ner-uh-buh) (adjective): Capable of or susceptible to being wounded or hurt, as by a weapon: a vulnerable part of the body. 2. Open to moral attack, criticism, temptation, etc.: an argument vulnerable to refutation. Habitat destruction and poaching make Cheetah’s vulnerable.
Venerable (ven-er-uh-buh) (adjective): Commanding respect because of great age or impressive dignity; worthy of veneration or reverence, as because of high office or noble character: a venerable member of Congress. Impressive or interesting because of age, antique appearance, etc.: a venerable oak tree. The venerable Supreme Court justice had made several key rulings in landmark cases throughout the years.
Defalcate (di-FAL-keyt) (verb): To steal or misuse money or property entrusted to one's care. To misuse funds; embezzle. The stockbroker defalcated millions from investment clients.
Consortium (kuhn-SAWR-tee-uhm) (noun): 1. A combination of financial institutions, capitalists, etc., for carrying into effect some financial operation requiring large resources of capital. 2. Any association, partnership, or union. A consortium of textile manufacturers.
Abase (u-beys) (verb): 1. Cause to feel shame. Strong feelings of embarrassment. 2. Hurt the pride of. Humiliate. To lower in rank, prestige, or esteem. He abased himself so much that he became unable to look into people's eyes.
Abate (u-beyt) (verb): Make less active or intense. Slack off. Become less in amount or intensity. After the Marathon race, I hope the leg pain will abate soon.
clout (klout) (Noun): Great influence(especially political or social) A blow, especially with the fist Gatsby wondered whether he had enough clout to be admitted to the exclusive club.
Cloying (cloy-ing) (Adjective): Distasteful(because excessive) excessively sweet or sentimental Disliking the cloying sweetness of standard wedding cakes, Jody and Tom chose a home-made carrot cake for their reception.
Primeval (prahy-mee-vuh) (adjective): Of or pertaining to the first age or ages, esp. of the world: primeval forms of life. 2. Original, ancient. The first primates to walk on two legs, called Australopithecus, were the primeval ancestors of modern man.
Propitious (pruh-pish-uhs) (adjective): Presenting favorable conditions; favorable: propitious weather. Indicative of favor; auspicious: propitious omens. The clear blue sky visible on the horizon suggested that the weather would be propitious for sailing.
Hogwash (HAWG-wosh) (noun): 1. Any worthless stuff. 2. Meaningless or insincere talk, writing, etc.; nonsense; bunk. These are usually intended to deceive people. His answer was pure hogwash.
Glom (glom) (verb): 1. To become very interested in something such as a new idea or fashion or in someone (followed by onto). Retailers are glomming onto a new fashion among teens for outsize clothes. 2. To get or take something that you want. To catch, grab or steal. He's glommed onto a couple of my tapes and I can't get them back from him.
Biennial (bI'eneeul) (Adj): Occurring every second year T-20 World Cup is a biennial event unlike the 50 over counterpart which is held every 4 years.
Tenacity (ti'nasitee) (noun): Quality of being determined to do or achieve something Stick with something even when the going gets tough The day belonged to Paula Radcliffe, Full Marathon Champion from Great Britain, who showed her customary tenacity and passion to clinch the women's race in ING New York City Marathon. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paula_Radcliffe

Travesty (trav-uh-stee) (noun): A literary or artistic composition so inferior in quality as to be merely a grotesque or exaggerated imitation of its model. The entire Iraq war was a travesty of justice, based on lies, greed and arrogance.

Torpor (tawr-per) (noun): 1. Sluggish inactivity or inertia. 2. A state of suspended physical powers and activities. The bear went into a torpor during winter season.

Dulcet (dul·cet) (Adjective): Sweet sounding The dulcet sound of the birds at dawn was soon drowned out by the roar of traffic passing our motel.
Drone (drn) (Noun): idle person; male bee Content to his wife’s support, the would-be writer was in reality nothing but a drone.
	Buckle (buhk-uhl) (verb): 1. To prepare (oneself) for action; apply (oneself) vigorously to something: The student buckled to the lesson. 2. To bend, warp, bulge, or collapse: The bridge buckled in the storm. He was by nature a daydreamer and found it hard to buckle down.
	Burnish (bur-nish) (verb): 1. To polish (a surface) by friction. 2. To make smooth and bright. Monish’s mother asked him to burnish the silverware before setting the table.
	Acrimonious (ak-ruh-MOH-nee-uhs) (adj): Full of anger, arguments and bad feeling. Their marriage ended eight years ago in an acrimonious divorce.
	Parsimonious (pahr-suh-MOH-nee-uhs) (adj): Not willing to spend money or give something She's too parsimonious to replace that burnt out cooking utensil with a new one.
	Occlusion (u'kloozhun) (noun): Closure or blockage In Medical terms, a coronary occlusion is the partial or complete obstruction of blood flow in a coronary artery. This condition may cause a heart attack.
	Expulsion (ik'spúlshun) (noun): 1. The act of forcing out someone or something; 2. Squeezing out by applying pressure The Supreme Court referred the issue of former Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh’s expulsion from the state assembly to a five-judge constitution bench for examination of its legality.

Tenuous (ten-yoo-uhs) (noun): Thin or slender in form, as a thread. Lacking a sound basis, as reasoning; unsubstantiated; weak: a tenuous argument. Israeli troops and Hamas fighters traded gun shots again, puncturing a tenuous truce in Gaza.

Tepid (tep-id) (Adj): 3. Moderately warm; lukewarm: tepid water. 4. Characterized by a lack of force or enthusiasm: tepid prose. The geo-thermal pools of Hot Creek flow into the tepid waters of the creek.

A cappella (ah kuh-pel-uh) (Adjective): Singing without accompaniment. Choral singing performed without instruments. A cappella expression means “in chapel style” in Italian. Centuries ago, religious music composed for use in chapels which, unlike large churches, had no instruments was usually for voices only.

Crescendo (creh-SHEN-doe) (Adjective): A gradual increase, especially in the volume or intensity of sound in a passage. A passage played with a gradual increase in volume or intensity. That musical composition had one loud crescendo after another.

Soprano (suh-PRAH-noh) (noun): 1. The highest singing voice in women and boys. 2. One singing with such a voice. Tenor, Alto and Soprano make up the three vocal ranges. Tenor is the low range, Alto is the mid range and Soprano is the high range.
Octave (ok-TEYV) (noun): The space between two musical notes which are eight musical notes apart. Do Re Mi Fa Sol La Ti Do is an octave where second 'Do' is twice the frequency of the first 'Do'. Her remarkable vocal range spanned three and a half octaves. I am sure she is going to win the competition.
	Genre (zhahn-ruh) (noun): A category of artistic composition, as in music or literature, marked by a distinctive style, form, or content. Some of the popular genre of music created by Academy Award winner A. R. Rahman include Reggae and Blues (R&B), Folk and Pop.
	Refrain (ri-freyn) (noun): 1. A phrase or verse recurring at intervals in a song or poem, esp. at the end of each stanza. 2. The part of a song where a soloist is joined by a group of singers; chorus. The song “Jai Ho” popular after the refrain in the song; was lauded for the hope and optimism it portrays and won the Academy Award in the Best Song category for A. R. Rahman and Gulzar.