Italian words and phrases

The Via Francigena [ˈviːa franˈtʃiːdʒena] is the common name of an ancient road and pilgrim route running from France to Rome, though it is usually considered to have its starting point much further away, in the English cathedral city of Canterbury.

Tempera (Italian: [ˈtɛmpera]), also known as egg tempera, is a permanent, fast-drying painting medium consisting of colored pigments mixed with a water-soluble binder medium (usually a glutinous material such as egg yolk or some other size).

Timpani (/ˈtɪmpəni/; Italian pronunciation: [ˈtimpani]), or kettledrums (also informally called timps), are musical instruments in the percussion family.

Scordatura [skordaˈtuːra] (literally Italian for "mistuning"), is a tuning of a stringed instrument different from the normal, standard tuning.

Chiaroscuro (English pronunciation: /kiˌɑːrəˈskjʊəroʊ/; Italian: [ˌkjaroˈskuːro]; Italian for light-dark) in art is the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition.

Omertà /oʊˈmɛərtə/ (Italian pronunciation: [omerˈta]) is a code of honor that places importance on silence, non-cooperation with authorities, and non-interference in the illegal actions of others.

A cantata [kanˈtaːta] (literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb cantare, "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir.

Staccato [stakˈkaːto] (Italian for "detached") is a form of musical articulation.

In music, tremolo (Italian pronunciation: [ˈtrɛːmolo]), or tremolando ([tremoˈlando]), is a trembling effect.

A capriccio or caprice (sometimes plural: caprices, capri or, in Italian, capricci), is a piece of music, usually fairly free in form and of a lively character.

The term stretto [ˈstretto] (plural: stretti) comes from the Italian past participle of stringere, and means "narrow", "tight", or "close".

In music, a pasticcio or pastiche is an opera or other musical work composed of works by different composers who may or may not have been working together, or an adaptation or localization of an existing work that is loose, unauthorized, or inauthentic.

Spiccato [spikˈkaːto] is a bowing technique for string instruments in which the bow appears to bounce lightly upon the string.

Cantastoria (pronounced [ˌkantaˈstɔːrja]; also spelled cantastorie [ˌkantaˈstɔːrje], canta storia or canta historia) comes from Italian for "story-singer" and is known by many other names around the world.

In music, sostenuto [sosteˈnuːto] is a term from Italian that means "sustained".

Melodramma (plural: melodrammi) is a 17th-century Italian term for a text to be set as an opera, or the opera itself.