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deists

(Encyclopedia)deists dēˈĭsts [key], term commonly applied to those thinkers in the 17th and 18th cent. who held that the course of nature sufficiently demonstrates the existence of God. For them formal religion ...

saxophone

(Encyclopedia)saxophone, musical instrument invented in the 1840s by Adolphe Sax. Although it uses the single reed of the clarinet family, it has a conical tube and is made of metal. By 1846 there was a double fami...

Marley, Bob

(Encyclopedia)Marley, Bob (Robert Nesta Marley), 1945–81, Jamaican reggae singer, songwriter, and guitarist. As a member of the Wailers, a reggae band that included...

ground bass

(Encyclopedia)ground bass, melodic phrase used repeatedly as a bass line. In its earlier form, developed in the 13th and 14th cent., the ground or basso ostinato [Ital.,=obstinate] never varied in harmonization or ...

Caruso, Enrico

(Encyclopedia)Caruso, Enrico kəro͞oˈsō, Ital. änrēˈkō käro͞oˈzō [key], 1873–1921, Italian operatic tenor, b. Naples. The natural beauty, range, and power of his voice made him one of the greatest sing...

Stanley, Ralph Edmond

(Encyclopedia)Stanley, Ralph Edmond, 1927–2016, American bluegrass singer and banjo player, b. Dickenson co., Va. He and his brother, Carter Glen Stanley, 1925–66, were sons of a country-singer father and banjo...

Björling, Jussi

(Encyclopedia)Björling, Jussi yo͞osˈsĭ byörˈlĭng [key], 1911–60, Swedish tenor. He studied at the Royal Opera School in Stockholm, making his debut there in 1930 as Don Ottavio in Mozart's Don Giovanni. He...

Getz, Stan

(Encyclopedia)Getz, Stan, 1927–91, American jazz tenor saxophonist, b. Philadelphia, as Stanley Gayetsky. As a mature musician he was especially known for his “cool” jazz style. He began playing as a teenager...

Delsarte, François

(Encyclopedia)Delsarte, François fräNswäˈ dĕlsärtˈ [key], 1811–71, French teacher of acting and singing. He studied singing (1825–29) at the Paris Conservatoire and appeared as a tenor at the Opéra-Comi...

Domingo, Plácido

(Encyclopedia)Domingo, Plácido plăˈcēdō dōmēˈgō [key], 1941–, Spanish operatic tenor, b. Madrid, Spain. He made his operatic debut in Mexico City in 1961 and his New York debut at the Metropolitan Opera ...

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