OVERTURE

Overture

Overture in music is the term originally applied to the instrumental introduction to an opera. During the early Romantic era, composers such as Beethoven and Mendelssohn began to use the term to refer to independent, self-existing instrumental, programmatic works that presaged genres such as the symphonic poem. These were "at first undoubtedly intended to be played at the head of a programme".

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overture

Noun

  1. An opening; a recess or chamber.
  2. disclosure; discovery; revelation
  3. An approach or proposal made to initiate communication, establish a relationship etc.
  4. A motion placed before a legislative body, such as the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.
  5. a musical introduction to a piece of music.


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: overture
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

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