idée fixe

obsession idée fixe \ee-day-FEEKS\ noun. : an idea that dominates one's mind especially for a prolonged period : obsession.

An example of an idée fixe is in Cervantes's Don Quixote: Don Quixote reveals his kinship to the most commonly encountered of Cervantes's character types: the head-in-clouds fantasist, obsessed by his idée fixe.

The object of the Artist's love is represented by an elusive theme called the "idée fixe" – the object of fixation. Violins and flute float flirtatiously through the charming melody. The noise of the rest of the orchestra represents the Artist's frustration and despair.

Leitmotif comes with a specific narrative association, usually a person/character. Associated particularly with Wagner and The Ring Cycle. Idée fixe is a motif that is used obsessively. Associated particularly with Berlioz and his Symphonie Fantastique.

: not subject to change or fluctuation. a fixed income. (2) : firmly set in the mind.

You use fixed to describe something which stays the same and does not or cannot vary.

1. They issue a fixed number of shares that trade publicly.
2. ... a world without fixed laws.
3. Tickets will be printed with fixed entry times.
4. Many restaurants offer fixed-price menus.

Petersburg), the most popular Russian composer of all time. His music has always had great appeal for the general public in virtue of its tuneful, open-hearted melodies, impressive harmonies, and colourful, picturesque orchestration, all of which evoke a profound emotional response.

A Lied (plural: Lieder) is a German song that sets poetry to music, performed by a single vocalist and piano.

The idée fixe returns in the middle of the movement, played by oboe and flute. The sound of distant thunder at the end of the movement is a striking passage for four timpani.

Symphony Fantastique has an idee fixe that represents his love for the woman. It appears in every movement to unify them, but shows the development of the story by changing in character. Listen to the very opening of the symphony; the first melody played is the idee fixe.

Lesson Summary A leitmotif is a recurring melody or fragment in music that represents a person, object, or concept. The term was first coined to describe recurring motifs in Der Freischütz, a German opera by Carl Maria von Weber.

A melodic motif is a melodic formula, established without reference to intervals. A rhythmic motif is the term designating a characteristic rhythmic formula, an abstraction drawn from the rhythmic values of a melody. A motif thematically associated with a person, place, or idea is called a leitmotif.