passagework

[ pas-ij-wurk ]

noun

, Music.

1. writing that is often extraneous to the thematic material of a work and is typically of a virtuosic or decorative character:

   passagework consisting of scales, arpeggios, trills, and double octaves.

2. the performance of such writing:

   The pianist's passagework is brilliantly clear and smooth.

Word History and Origins

Origin of passagework¹

First recorded in 1860–65; passage ¹ + work

Example Sentences

Alternating between legato and staccato, her tone practically bounced off the harpsichord, and she tumbled gracefully through intricate passagework.

From New York Times

Where “Kauyumari” draws on a Mexican creation story, Márquez’s “Fandango” draws on that country’s music, turning the orchestra into a lively rhythm section that allowed Meyers’s violin to sing with a silky tone, even if her passagework could be difficult to hear.

From New York Times

If his tone sometimes paled in fast passagework at the final performance on Sunday, he was always winning.

From New York Times

His passagework had a hard glare, and he lined up chords neatly like punctuation marks.

From New York Times

Her scintillating accounts of the scherzos deftly balance bursts of breathless passagework and plaintive lyricism.

From New York Times