Sotto voce

Sotto voce

"Sotto voce" (pronounced IPA|, sot-toh voh-che) (literally "under voice"), an Italian expression, means to speak under one's breath. In music, a dramatic lowering of the vocal or instrumental tone — not necessarily pianissimo, but with a hushed quality. An example of Sotto voce is in the Lacrymosa from Mozart's Requiem Mass in D Minor. The singers drop down their volume in order to attain the 'hushed' quality desired.

The term may also denote muttering in literary, theatrical or film scripts (related to the aside).


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  • sotto voce — ● sotto voce locution adverbiale (italien sotto voce, sous la voix) Terme d interprétation mis sur un passage qui doit être exécuté d une voix douce et amortie. sotto voce [sɔtovɔtʃe] adv. ÉTYM. 1758, Rousseau, Dict. de musique; mots ital. « voix …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • sotto voce — ► ADVERB & ADJECTIVE ▪ in a quiet voice. ORIGIN from Italian sotto under + voce voice …   English terms dictionary

  • Sotto voce — (ital., spr. sotto wotsche), so v.w. mit gedämpfter, mit halber Stimme. Bei Bogeninstrumenten wird das S. v. hervorgebracht, indem[314] man die Saiten nahe am Griffbrete mit dem Bogen anstreicht …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • sotto voce — 1737, Italian, lit. under voice, from sotto, from L. subtus below (Cf. Fr. sous) …   Etymology dictionary

  • Sotto voce — Sot to vo ce [It.] 1. (Mus.) With a restrained voice or moderate force; in an undertone. [1913 Webster] 2. Spoken low or in an undertone. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • sotto voce — ит. (сотто воче) муз. вполголоса. Толковый словарь иностранных слов Л. П. Крысина. М: Русский язык, 1998 …   Словарь иностранных слов русского языка

  • Sotto voce — (ital., spr. ßottowōtsche), mit gedämpfter Stimme, halblaut …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Sotto voce — (ital., Mus., spr. wohtsche), gedämpfter Stimme, halblaut …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Sotto voce — (–wotsche), ital., mit gedämpfter Stimme …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

  • sotto voce — [sät′ō vō′chē; ] It [ sō̂t′tō̂ vō̂′che] n. [It, under the voice] in an undertone, so as not to be overheard …   English World dictionary

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