Attacco, in music, indicates a short

phrase In syntax and grammar, a phrase is a group of words or singular word acting as a grammatical unit. For instance, the English expression "the very happy squirrel" is a noun phrase which contains the adjective phrase "very happy". Phrases can consi ...

, treated as a point of

imitation Imitation (from Latin ''imitatio'', "a copying, imitation") is a behavior whereby an individual observes and replicates another's behavior. Imitation is also a form of that leads to the "development of traditions, and ultimately our culture. ...

; and employed, either as the subject of a

fugue In music, a fugue () is a contrapuntal compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject (a musical theme) that is introduced at the beginning in imitation (repetition at different pitches) and which recurs frequently in the c ...

, as a subordinate element introduced for the purpose of increasing the interest of its development, as a leading feature in a

motet In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the pre-eminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to Margar ...

madrigal A madrigal is a form of secular vocal music most typical of the Renaissance (15th–16th c.) and early Baroque (1600–1750) periods, although revisited by some later European composers. The polyphonic madrigal is unaccompanied, and the number o ...

, full

anthem An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short ...

, or other choral composition, or as a means of relieving the monotony of an otherwise too homogeneous

part-song A part song, part-song or partsong is a form of choral music that consists of a song to a secular or non-Liturgy, liturgical sacred text, written or arranged for several voice type, vocal parts. Part songs are commonly sung by an SATB choir, but ...

. The name comes from the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

'' attaccare'', "to unite" or "to bind together." A striking instance of an attacco used as the subject of a fugue is

J. S. Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

's ''

The Well-Tempered Clavier ''The Well-Tempered Clavier'', BWV 846–893, consists of two sets of preludes and fugues in all 24 major and minor keys for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach. In the composer's time, ''clavier'', meaning keyboard, referred to a variety of in ...

'', No. 27.Grove, George; Fuller-Maitland, John Alexander; Pratt, Waldo Selden; and Boyd, Charles Newell; eds. (1906).
Grove's dictionary of music and musicians
', p.116. Macmillan. . When used merely as an accessory, it almost always represents a fragment of the true subject; as in this passage from "Ye House of Gilead," from

Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concertos. Handel received his training i ...

's ''

Jephtha Jephthah (pronounced ; he, יִפְתָּח, ''Yīftāḥ''), appears in the Book of Judges as a judge who presided over Israel for a period of six years (). According to Judges, he lived in Gilead. His father's name is also given as Gilead, ...

''. In the madrigal and motet, a new attacco is usually introduced with each new paragraph of the verbal text; in the

glee Glee means delight, a form of happiness. Glee may also refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 30 ...

, properly so called, the part played by the attacco is less important; while in

s, its appearance as a prominent feature is still less frequent. It can, however, be found in

John Wall Callcott John Wall Callcott (20 November 1766 – 15 May 1821) was an eminent English composer. Callcott was born in Kensington, London. He was a pupil of Haydn, and is celebrated mainly for his glee compositions and catches. In the best known of his ...

's "Go, plaintive Breeze," in

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sy ...

's four-part Lied ''Türkisches Schenkenlied: Setze mir nicht, du Grobian''.

References

* {{Grove1900, wstitle=Attacco Formal sections in music analysis Repetition (music)