Altissimo (music)

Altissimo (from Latin: the highest possible) is used in music theory and music notation to indicate in a musical passage that as many tones as possible should be played.

The term altissimo may also relate to the highest possible register of (especially) wind instruments such as the saxophone. In order to be able to play altissimo, various special handles or finger positions must be applied to the instrument, and often in combination with overblow.

Altissimo op de cello

When you leave the cello key where the fingers and hand move to move to play, you can speak on the cello of altissimo. However, the sound is often a bit dull. An example of altissimo in the cellular literature: In Camille Saint-Saëns celloconcert No. 1 there is a passage in which the notes are getting higher, until only flageolets are played. The cellist leaves the test. In addition, David Popper, a well-known composer in the cello literature, was also free in the use of altissimo in his ethudes and other compositions. One of his compositions in which is happening is his Elfendans.

For the advanced cellist, altissimo will not be a technical problem, but a practical problem may occur: the strings are played beyond the key, resulting in a resin from the strings on the strings. Thus, in the "altissimia area" the fingers will move across the strings as long as the strings have not been cleaned. It's quite a crime when the cellist with sticky fingertips still has to play in lower positions. Pop and Rock

The Sgt valve. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, A Day in the Life of the Beatles ends with an altissimo. The tone is even above the audience. This is the first compilation in pop music where this phenomenon was used.

In the heavy metal there is an extended technique called mute play. In this way the string is dashed off close to the comb. A side effect of this game technique is that it also makes it easy to play altissimoflageolets by striking the strings very close to the bridge. The longitudinal wave is thus given more energy, which makes the upper tones louder. By moving the finger along the string, there is a gloss of the 16th to the 5th harmonic. The Sonic Youth band plays their guitars with a drum stick, playing polyphonic glittering close to the bridge. This game technique is also used in the country with a bottleneck. Pink Floyd's South Barrett used in many compositions is Zippo lighter, as can be seen in Tonite Let's All Make Love video in London.

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