A continually repeated musical phrase or rhythm that persists throughout a composition; a musical obsession.
From Italian 'ostinato' (obstinate/stubborn). It's music being STUBBORN — repeating the same phrase over and over while everything else changes around it. Ravel's Boléro is the most famous example.
A musical phrase that REFUSES to stop! Ravel's Boléro plays the same melody 18 TIMES while getting louder and louder — that's ostinato! It's musical stubbornness, and it's HYPNOTIC! Your brain can't stop listening! ðŸ”🎵
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