Definition of tarantella in English:


(also tarantelle)


  • 1A rapid whirling dance originating in southern Italy.

    • ‘Finland has no distinctive folk dance - no highland fling, morris dance or tarantella.’
    • ‘The score has also been slightly rearranged - the ballet opens with a tableau set to Renaissance lute music, while the third-act tarantella is moved into the first act.’
    • ‘She does so by asking him to help her rehearse the dance - the tarantella - that she must perform the following evening.’
    1. 1.1A piece of music written in fast 6/8 time in the style of the tarantella.
      • ‘By the 19th century, however, musicians made more money out of tarantellas by their popularity as compositions.’
      • ‘The third alteration becomes an A-minor tarantella.’

