Ossia

{{Short description|Alternative musical passage in lieu of the original}} {{about||the town in West Virginia|Ossia, West Virginia|the book by Jimin Seo|Ossia (poetry collection)}} {{One source|date=September 2010}} thumb|upright=1.5|Ossia example (2nd bar){{Listen|plain=yes|filename=Ossia-vclo.mid|title=Play original|filename2=Ossia-vclo-ossia.mid|title2=Play ossia}} '''{{Lang|it|Ossia|italic=no}}''' ({{IPA|it|osˈsiːa|lang}}) is a musical term for an alternative passage which may be played instead of the original passage. The word ''ossia'' comes from the Italian for "alternatively" and was originally spelled ''o sia'', meaning "or be it".<ref name=Fallows>{{cite book|last=Fallows|first=David|author-link=David Fallows|chapter=Ossia|title=Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians|year=2001}}</ref>

''Ossia'' passages are very common in opera and solo-piano works. They are usually an easier version of the preferred form of passage, but in Mily Balakirev's ''Islamey'', for instance, the urtext has ossia passages of both types (simpler and more difficult). Bel canto vocal music also frequently uses ''ossia'', also called ''oppure'', passages to illustrate a more embellished version of the vocal line.<ref name=Fallows />

On the other hand, an ''ossia'' marking does not always indicate a change in difficulty; the piano solo music of Franz Liszt is typically full of alternative passages, often no easier or more difficult than the rest of the piece. This reflects Liszt's desire to leave his options open during a performance. Many of his ''ossia'' passages are cadenzas.

An unusual use of ''ossia'' is found in Alban Berg's Violin Concerto where several ''ossia'' parts are included for the solo violin. If the soloist chooses to play these, the concertmaster is required to play a different ossia (which takes part of the solo violin line that is lost in favor of the soloist's ossia).

==References== {{reflist}}

Category:Musical terminology Category:Musical notation Category:Italian words and phrases