Dictionary of Music - Birding America

gioco, con 159Youmans, and Kurt Weill. His best-known songsinclude “Fascinatin’ Rhythm,” “Embraceable You,”and “Someone to Watch over Me.”gesangvoll (gə zäng ′fôl) German. A direction toperform in a sweetly singing manner.geschwind (gə shvint′) German.perform in rapid tempo.A direction togesteigert (gə shtī′gərt) German. A direction toperform with gradually mounting intensity.gestopft (gə shtôpft′) German. A direction to usethe stopped notes of the French horn (see STOPPING).geteilt (g ə tīlt′).The German term for DIVISI.getragen (gə trä′g ə n) German. A direction toperform in a slow, sustained manner.G-flat One of the musical tones (see PITCHNAMES), one half tone below G and one half toneabove F. On the piano, G-flat is identical with F-sharp (see ENHARMONIC for an explanation). For thelocation of G-flat on the piano, see KEYBOARD.Gibbons (gib′ənz), Orlando, 1583–1625. AnEnglish composer and organist who is rememberedmainly for his anthems and madrigals. He wasamong the first to write verse anthems, that is,anthems with sections for soloists and instrumentalaccompaniment, alternating with sections for thefull choir. A famous musician during his day, Gibbonsserved as organist for the Chapel Royal fromthe age of twenty-three until his death. In addition toanthems and madrigals, he wrote motets, keyboardmusic, and some chamber music, consisting mostlyof fantasias and dances scored for consorts (ensembles)of viols.His son, Christopher Gibbons (1615–1676),also served as organist of the Chapel Royal andWestminster Cathedral. He wrote numerous anthemsand instrumental works.gig Musicians’ slang for a professional bookingor job.gigue (zhēg) French. A very lively dance, probablybased on the sixteenth-century Irish or Englishjig, that became the concluding dance movement ofthe standard fourmovement eighteenth-century suite(the first three were the allemande, courante, andsaraband). The gigue in a suite is nearly always in6/8 or 12/8 meter and has two sections, each ofwhich is repeated. In one form, the second sectionpresents the subject of the first section inverted (themelody is turned upside down).Gilbert (gil′bûrt) and Sullivan (sul′ə vən). Thecreators of a series of comic operettas, librettistWilliam Schwenck Gilbert (1836–1911) and composerArthur Seymour SULLIVAN (1842–1900). Theoperettas generally have humorous plots and are arare combination of good-natured satire, liltingmelody, and brilliant parody, both textual and musical.Through exaggeration, they poke fun at personaland social foibles, as well as at hackneyed musicalconventions. They are usually performed in a highlystylized manner that is based directly on the originalproductions of the operas at the Savoy Theatre inLondon by Richard D’Oyly Carte (1844–1901), themanager who first thought of having Gilbert andSullivan collaborate on a musical play. Every word,gesture, and piece of action was carefully chosen tocontribute to the overall effect, with the result that theactors have an almost marionettelike quality. However,the total result was so successful that the samegestures and stage actions are still copied by mostperformers today, both amateur and professional. Thefirst of the Gilbert and Sullivan operettas was the oneactTrial by Jury (1875), followed by H.M.S.Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance, Patience, Iolanthe,Princess Ida, The Mikado, Ruddigore, The Yeomen ofthe Guard, The Gondoliers, Utopia Limited, and TheGrand Duke (1896). With the exception of the lasttwo, the Gilbert and Sullivan operettas were enormouslysuccessful in their day and are still popular inevery English-speaking country of the world. (Thefact that the humor of the librettos is generally lost intranslation has limited their popularity elsewhere.)gimelgioco, conSee GYMEL.See GIOCOSO.