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homelessness

(Encyclopedia)homelessness, the condition of not having a permanent place to live, widely perceived as a societal problem only beginning in the 1980s. Figures for the number of homeless people in the United States ...

civil commitment

(Encyclopedia)civil commitment or involuntary commitment, process by which a court determines whether or not to order an individual to receive treatment or care or be confined. A person may be committed after a hea...

Gounod, Charles François

(Encyclopedia)Gounod, Charles François shärl fräNswäˈ go͞onōˈ [key], 1818–93, French composer, studied at the Paris Conservatory and received the Grand Prix de Rome in 1839. His fame rests chiefly on his ...

Cui, César Antonovich

(Encyclopedia)Cui, César Antonovich tsāzärˈ äntôˈnôvĭch küēˈ [key], 1835–1918, Russian composer and critic, a military engineer by profession. As a music critic in St. Petersburg and Paris, he champio...

Cherubini, Luigi

(Encyclopedia)Cherubini, Luigi lwēˈjē kāro͞obēˈnē [key], 1760–1842, Italian composer, who lived in Paris after 1788. Before he was 16 he wrote masses and other sacred works; he later composed Italian oper...

Rodrigo, Joaquín

(Encyclopedia)Rodrigo, Joaquín, 1902–99, Spanish composer, b. Sagunto, Valencia. He lost his sight as a child and wrote his music in Braille. After his musical talent was recognized, Rodrigo studied in Paris wit...

conducting

(Encyclopedia)conducting, in music, the art of unifying the efforts of a number of musicians simultaneously engaged in musical performance. In the Middle Ages and Renaissance the conductor was primarily a time beat...

Atkins, Chet

(Encyclopedia)Atkins, Chet (Chester Burton Atkins), 1924–2001, American country guitarist, singer, and record company executive, b. Luttrell, Tenn. Part of a musical family, he played fiddle and guitar as a young...

flamenco

(Encyclopedia)flamenco, Spanish music and dance typical of the Romani (Gypsy), or gitano. Flamenco dancing is characterized by colorful costumes, intense and erotic movements, stamping of the feet (zapateado), and ...

polyphony

(Encyclopedia)polyphony pəlĭfˈənē [key], music whose texture is formed by the interweaving of several melodic lines. The lines are independent but sound together harmonically. Contrasting terms are homophony, ...