music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...

and other performing arts, the phrase (; from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

for 'at one's pleasure' or 'as you desire'), often shortened to "ad lib" (as an

adjective In linguistics, an adjective ( abbreviated ) is a word that generally modifies a noun or noun phrase or describes its referent. Its semantic role is to change information given by the noun. Traditionally, adjectives were considered one of the ...

adverb An adverb is a word or an expression that generally modifies a verb, adjective, another adverb, determiner, clause, preposition, or sentence. Adverbs typically express manner, place, time, frequency, degree, level of certainty, etc., answering ...

) or "ad-lib" (as a

verb A verb () is a word ( part of speech) that in syntax generally conveys an action (''bring'', ''read'', ''walk'', ''run'', ''learn''), an occurrence (''happen'', ''become''), or a state of being (''be'', ''exist'', ''stand''). In the usual descr ...

noun A noun () is a word that generally functions as the name of a specific object or set of objects, such as living creatures, places, actions, qualities, states of existence, or ideas.Example nouns for: * Living creatures (including people, alive, ...

), refers to various forms of improvisation. The roughly synonymous phrase ('in accordance with ne'sgood pleasure') is less common but, in its Italian form , entered the musical '' lingua franca'' (see below). The phrase "at liberty" is often associated

mnemonic A mnemonic ( ) device, or memory device, is any learning technique that aids information retention or retrieval (remembering) in the human memory for better understanding. Mnemonics make use of elaborative encoding, retrieval cues, and image ...

ally (because of the

alliteration Alliteration is the conspicuous repetition of initial consonant sounds of nearby words in a phrase, often used as a literary device. A familiar example is "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers". Alliteration is used poetically in various ...

of the ''lib-'' syllable), although it is not the translation (there is no cognation between and ). Libido is the etymologically closer cognate known in English.

Music

As a direction in

sheet music Sheet music is a handwritten or printed form of musical notation that uses musical symbols to indicate the pitches, rhythms, or chords of a song or instrumental musical piece. Like its analogs – printed books or pamphlets in English, ...

, indicates that the performer or conductor has one of a variety of types of discretion with respect to a given passage: *to play the passage in

free time Free time, traditionally usually called ''leisure time'' or ''leisure'', refers to the time when one is not working. It may also refer to: * Free time (music), a type of musical meter free from musical time and time signature * ''Freetime'' (album ...

rather than in strict or " metronomic"

tempo In musical terminology, tempo ( Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (ofte ...

(a practice known as '' rubato'' when not expressly indicated by the composer); *to improvise a melodic line fitting the general structure prescribed by the passage's written notes or chords; *to omit an instrument part, such as a nonessential

accompaniment Accompaniment is the musical part which provides the rhythmic and/or harmonic support for the melody or main themes of a song or instrumental piece. There are many different styles and types of accompaniment in different genres and styles o ...

, for the duration of the passage; or *in the phrase "repeat ," to play the passage an arbitrary number of times ('' cf.'' vamp). Note that the direction (see above) has a more restricted meaning, generally referring to only the first two types of discretion. Baroque music, especially, has a written or implied , with most composers intimating the freedom the performer and conductor have. For post-Baroque classical music and jazz, see cadenza.

Other performing arts

"Ad-lib" is used to describe individual moments during live theatre when an actor speaks through their character using words not found in the play's text. When the entire performance is predicated on spontaneous creation, the process is called improvisational theatre. In

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

, the term ''ad-lib'' usually refers to the interpolation of unscripted material in an otherwise scripted performance. For example, in interviews,

Dustin Hoffman Dustin Lee Hoffman (born August 8, 1937) is an American actor and filmmaker. As one of the key actors in the formation of New Hollywood, Hoffman is known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and emotionally vulnerable characters. He is th ...

says he ''ad-libbed'' the now famous line, "I'm walking here! I'm walking here!" as "Ratso" Rizzo in ''

Midnight Cowboy ''Midnight Cowboy'' is a 1969 American drama film, based on the 1965 novel of the same name by James Leo Herlihy. The film was written by Waldo Salt, directed by John Schlesinger, and stars Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight, with notable smaller ...

''. Live performers such as

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

talk-show hosts sometimes deliver material that sounds ad-libbed but is actually scripted. They may employ ''ad-lib writers'' to prepare such material. Some actors are also known for their ability or tendency to ad-lib, such as

Peter Falk Peter Michael Falk (September 16, 1927 – June 23, 2011) was an American film and television actor. He is best known for his role as Lieutenant Columbo in the long-running television series '' Columbo'' (1968–1978, 1989–2003), for which he ...

(of the series '' Columbo''), who would ad-lib such mannerisms as absent-mindedness while in character. The HBO sitcom '' Curb Your Enthusiasm'' by Seinfeld co-creator Larry David primarily uses retroscripting and ad lib instead of scripted dialogue.

References

* {{cite book , title=Amo, Amas, Amat and More , url=https://archive.org/details/amoamasamatmore00ehrl , url-access=registration , first=Eugene , last=Ehrlich , year=1985 , pag
23
, publisher=Harper & Row, Publishers , location=New York Latin words and phrases Improvisation Musical terminology

Music

Other performing arts

See also

References