What does violone mean?
Violone is a rare English noun for a large bowed string instrument, most commonly the double bass. In historical contexts it can also refer to a large instrument from the viol family, whose strings were normally stopped and vibrated by the left hand. The instrument has a broad, resonant sound capable of providing an orchestral foundation. Although modern musicians normally call the double bass by that name, violone remains useful when discussing the history of bowed instruments, Baroque and Renaissance performance, and the development of the modern orchestral bass. The word is chiefly found in musicological writing, historical texts, and early-music contexts rather than in ordinary conversation. Its close connection with related names such as viola and violoncello also makes it memorable: it belongs to the same broad family of bowed string instruments and shares its name with one of the bass instruments’ historical ancestors.
nounA large bowed string instrument, now chiefly encountered as the double bass; in historical usage, also a large member of the viol family.
- The double bass, especially in historical or musical contexts.
- A large bowed instrument belonging to the viol family.
"The violone sustained the bass line beneath the orchestra."
"The violone sustained the bass line beneath the orchestra."
"A seventeenth-century manuscript describes the construction of a violone."
The regular English plural adds -s; Italian uses the plural violoni.
"Two violones stood at the back of the orchestra."
Its name literally means “big viola,” and it helped give the orchestra its deepest voice.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of violone
English borrowed the word from Italian violone, an augmentative of viola meaning “large viola” or “big viola.” The name reflects the instrument’s scale and its relationship to the viol family. The same Italian root also underlies violoncello, originally the diminutive of violone, while viola and viol belong to the same wider family of bowed string instruments.
How violone is actually used
The word is uncommon in modern English and is more often encountered in historical writing, early-music performance, and specialist musical contexts than in everyday speech.
Easily confused with violone
A bass viol belongs to the viol family and is not the same instrument as the violone, although the two names have sometimes been used loosely.