Etymology

obbligato

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Today it means: An obbligato section; a prominent countermelody, often written to be played or sung above the principal theme (in a higher pitch range). Full definition →

First used 19th c.Italian obbligato
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The story

  1. Italian · derived fromobbligato
  2. English todayobbligato

From Italian obbligato. Piecewise doublet of obliged.

First known use, by meaning

  • from 19th c. An obbligato section; a prominent countermelody, often written to be played or sung above the principal theme (in a higher pitch range).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.