sostenuto

[ sos-tuh-noo-toh, soh-stuh-; Italian saws-te-noo-taw ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

adjective

, plural sos·te·nu·tos, Italian sos·te·nu·ti [saws-te-, noo, -tee].

sostenuto

/ ˌsɒstəˈnuːtəʊ /

music (preceded by a tempo marking) to be performed in a smooth sustained manner

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1715–25; < Italian, past participle of sostenere; sustain

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C18: from Italian, from sostenere to sustain, from Latin sustinēre to uphold

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In the very midst of one of his finest and tenderest sostenuto passages, Josephine sneezed--and such a sneeze!

"But my tremolo—my sostenuto will be ruined," said Hippolyte wildly.

In the middle comes the second part, "Nel seno a destarmi;" then again the sostenuto.

In the next movement (Largo e sostenuto) sombre tones still prevail; the key is that of the dominant minor.

The symphony begins with an introduction marked sostenuto e maestoso, built on this theme.

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