A nocturne is a short gentle piece of music, often one written to be played on the piano. a piece of music, especially a soft beautiful piece of piano music (nocturnus; NOCTURNAL). Nineteenth-century character piece for piano. The name was first used 1812 by the Scottish composer John Field (1782-1837) for works employing a lyrical melody over an accompaniment of broken chords. Frédéric Chopin's romantic nocturnes, similar in style, are the most celebrated
(French, meaning 'of the night') A short composition, generally with three sections, often slightly melancholic in mood The first nocturnes were written for piano by John Field in the early 19th-century
The name is now used for a certain graceful and expressive form of instrumental composition, as the nocturne for orchestra in Mendelsohn's "Midsummer-Night's Dream"
A genre originally for piano alone (later adopted for other instruments, including the orchestral nocturne by Debussy) As the name implies, a nocturne is supposed to be evocative of the night
a pensive lyrical piece of music (especially for the piano) A person of rank above a commoner; a nobleman; a peer
in the eighteenth century, it was used to describe a short serenade in several movements for a small group of instruments It then became associated with Chopin to describe a brief, lyrical piano piece