▪ I. melody, n.
(ˈmɛlədɪ)
Also 4 melodi, meloudie, 4–6 melodye, 4–8 melodie, 6 mellodie.
[a. OF. melodie (mod.F. mélodie), ad. late L. melōdia, a. Gr. µελῳδία singing, chanting, also ‘a choral song, both words and air’ (L. & Sc.), f. µελῳδός singing songs, musical, also as n., lyric poet, f. µέλ-ος song + {wlenisisub}δ- contracted form of ἀοιδ-, ablaut- var. of ἀείδ-ειν to sing (cf. ἀοιδός singer, ἀοιδή, {wlenisisub}δή song, ode).
In Eccl. Latin melodia was applied to the singing of the sequences, ‘proses’, or rhythmical hymns, and was also used as a general term for a Gregorian ‘mode’. The word also occurs frequently in med.L. with the sense ‘sweet sound’, ‘music’ (cf. the frequent glosses, dulcis cantus, OHG. suoȥsanc, etc.); it was prob. influenced in meaning by etymologizing associations with mel, honey. It is now used in all the Rom. and Teut. langs.: cf. Sp. melod{iacu}a, Pg., It. melodia, G. melodie (poet. melodei), Du. melodie, melodij, Da., Sw. melodi.]
1. a. Sweet music, whether vocal or instrumental; beautiful arrangement of musical sounds; beauty of musical sounds, tunefulness.
| c 1290 St. Christopher 18 in S. Eng. Leg. I. 271 Þe kyng louede muche Melodie of fieþle and of songue. a 1300 Leg. Rood (1871) 28 Wiþ gret melodie of is harpe. a 1300 Cursor M. 7431 Gleuand he sang be-for þe king, And gert him wit his melodi Fal on-slepe. c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s T. 2239 Thus with alle blisse and melodye Hath Palamon ywedded Emelye. c 1430 Life St. Kath. (1884) 17 She herde a merueylous melodye of swetnes which passed alle hertes to descriue. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 7 b, They shall..se dayly theyr holy & blessed conuersacyon, & here theyr songe & melody. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon lii. 175 It was grete melody to here it. 1588 Shakes. Tit. A. ii. iii. 12 The Birds chaunt melody on euery bush. 1590 ― Mids. N. ii. ii. 13 Philomele with melodie, Sing in your sweet Lullaby. 1597 Hooker Eccl. Pol. v. xxxviii. §2 Dauid..was..the author of adding vnto poetrie melodie in publique prayer, melodie both vocall and instrumentall for the raysing vp of mens harts. 1604 R. Cawdrey Table Alph., Melody, sweete sounding, or sweete musick. 1667 Milton P.L. viii. 528 The melodie of Birds. 1728–46 Thomson Spring 576 Lend me your song, ye nightingales; oh pour The mazy-running soul of melody Into my varied verse. 1819 Shelley Prometh. Unb. ii. v. 77 Whilst all the winds with melody are ringing. 1870 Emerson Soc. & Solit, Art Wks. (Bohn) III. 19 We are like the musician on the lake, whose melody is sweeter than he knows. |
b. Phrase. to make melody. Now arch.
| a 1330 Otuel 631 Þe king took otuwel a non, & to his paleis made him gon, & makeden murthe & meloudie. c 1388 Chaucer Prol. 9 Smale foweles maken melodye. c 1440 York Myst. xv. 83 Make myrthe and melody. 1525 Ld. Berners Froiss. II. lxxxix. [lxxxv.] 264 They were ryght ioyous..and made grete chere and melody. 1535 Coverdale Eph. v. 19 Synginge and makynge melody vnto the Lorde in youre hertes. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VI 108 To tel you..what melody was made in Tavernes..it were a long woorke. 1778 Fletcher Lett. Wks. 1795 VII 222 Attempting to make such melody as you know is commonly made in these parts. |
c. transf. ‘Musical’ quality, beauty of sound in the arrangement of words, esp. in poetical composition.
| 1789 Belsham Ess. I. xii. 224 [The] exquisite beauties of which blank verse is susceptible..are majesty, melody, and variety. 1871 Swinburne Ess. & Stud. (1875) 304 In the verse of neither is there that instant and sensible melody which comes only of a secret and sovereign harmony of the whole nature. |
† 2. A song or other musical performance. Obs.
| c 1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 16/510 Al folk onourede al-so þe croiz..With offringues and with song and with oþur melodies al-so. c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) xxv. 116 Þe mynstrallez begynnez to do þaire melodys agayn. 1413 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton) ii. xlvi. (1859) 52 Yellyng with a carful melodye. 1530 Palsgr. 244/1 Melody played in a mornynge, reueil. |
3. a. A series of single notes arranged in musically expressive succession; a tune: = air n. 19.
| 1609 Douland Ornithop. Microl. 31 The Melodie of the Verses in the answeres off the first Tone. 1752 Avison Mus. Express. 67 By a Diversity of Harmonies, the Chain and Progression of Melodies is also finely supported. 1792 Thomson Let. to Burns Sept., I have..employed many leisure hours in selecting and collating the most favourite of our national melodies for publication. 1806 J. W. Callcott Mus. Gram. ii. i. 85 A particular succession of single sounds forms a melody or Tune. 1819 Keats Grecian Urn ii, Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard Are sweeter. 1860 Tyndall Glac. i. iii. 24 My guide kept in advance of me singing a Tyrolese melody. |
b. The principal part in a harmonized piece of music; = air n. 20.
| 1880 W. S. Rockstro in Grove Dict. Mus. I. 761/2 Arrangements [of metrical psalms] with the melody, as usual, in the Tenor..published at Leyden in 1633. |
c. transf. Applied to poems written to be sung to particular melodies. Also (nonce-use), a melodious poem or passage, an instance of verbal melody.
| 1807 Moore (title) Irish Melodies. 1814 Byron (title) Hebrew Melodies. 1842 W. Carleton Irish Peasantry (1843) I. Introd. 4 The touching and inimitable Melodies of my countryman Thomas Moore. 1872 Lowell Milton Writ. 1890 IV. 96 There are..some exquisite melodies (like the ‘Sabrina Fair’) among his earlier poems. |
d. Applied to pictorial combinations of colour thought to be analogous in mental effect to melodies.
| 1830 Galt Lawrie T. iii. v. (1849) 100 The rising sun was beginning to silver the leaves,..a visible melody,..like the song of early birds. 1843 Ruskin Arrows of Chace (1880) I. 23 [Turner's pictures] are studied melodies of exquisite colour. 1856 McCosh & Dickie Typical Forms ii. iii. 155 Colours are said to be in Melody when two contiguous tints..run insensibly into each other. |
4. That element of musical form which consists in the arrangement of single notes in expressive succession; contradistinguished from harmony.
| 1727–41 Chambers Cycl., Melody is the effect only of one single part, voice, or instrument. 1752 Avison Mus. Express. Advt., Melody may be defined the Means or Method of ranging single musical Sounds in a regular Progression, either ascending or descending, according to the established Principles. 1782 Burney Hist. Mus. II. 155 Thus far Melody and Harmony..had been cultivated for the use of the church. 1880 C. H. H. Parry in Grove Dict. Mus. II. 250 Melody is the general term which is vaguely used to denote successions of single notes which are musically effective. |
† 5. A pretended name for a company of harpers.
| 1486 Bk. St. Albans F vj b, A melody of Harpers. |
6. Comb.
| 1876 Stainer & Barrett Dict. Mus. Terms, Melody Organ or Harmonium, a harmonium so constructed that the upper note of the chords played is louder than the rest of the sounds. 1879 A. J. Hipkins in Grove Dict. Mus. I. 667 The melody-attachment..has the effect of making the melody-note, or air, when in the highest part, predominate. 1934 S. R. Nelson All about Jazz i. 27 In his melody section, Whiteman had a complement of violins, 'cellos, saxophones, trumpets and trombones. Ibid. ii. 56 The more attractive section in the orchestra, in which we have the melody instruments. 1955 L. Feather Encycl. Jazz (1956) 64 The slide trombone was at first considered no less a rhythm than a melody instrument in jazz. |
Hence ˈmelodyless a., without melody.
| 1832 Examiner 213/2 Music..passionless, melodyless, unrememberable. |
▪ II. melody, v. rare.
(ˈmɛlədɪ)
[f. the n. Cf. med.L. melōdiāre, OF. melodier.]
intr. To make melody; to sing. Hence ˈmelodying vbl. n.
| 1596 C. Fitzgeffrey Sir F. Drake (1881) 24 While with teares you sit melodying, Shee shall weepe with you, though she cannot sing. 1895 Chamb. Jrnl. XII. 748/2 He could hear something athwart the melodying which made him put his pipe away. |