[kah-dehn-zah] (Italian) "cadence " A virtuoso passage usually found near the end of a concerto movement or vocal aria Cadenzas are often based on the themes of the piece in which they appear and are improvisatory in style In the Classical and Romantic periods performers were expected to improvise or provide their own cadenzas, although Mozart began the practice of providing written cadenzas for some of his piano concertos
In classical music, a cadenza is a long and difficult solo passage in a piece for soloist and orchestra. a difficult part of a long piece of music, which a performer plays alone in order to show his or her skill (CADENCE)
An highlight of a concerto, found in one or more of the movements, when the soloist is given an opportunity to play entirely alone and show off his or her virtuosity
From Italian for cadence or final flourish Originally, elaborate improvisation by singers in certain arias, becoming progressively more brilliant This became increasingly common practice, and composers who feared their singers might go too far would, for safety's sake, write their own cadenzas
Many concertos since the baroque era include a cadenza, an unaccompanied passage in free rhythm in which the soloist displays his or her greatest virtuosity
(Italian): A moment near the end of a concerto movement for the soloist alone, usually a stretch of fast and difficult notes, originally designed for showing off
the improvised phrase sung before the final chords of an aria - generally an opportunity to show-off with a display of vocal pyrotechnics or an emotive, long phrase, to make the most of a climactic musical moment