Word of the Day

: May 29, 2007

hemidemisemiquaver

noun hem-ih-dem-ih-SEM-ih-kway-ver

What It Means

: a musical note with the time value of 1/64 of a whole note : sixty-fourth note

hemidemisemiquaver in Context

The pianist's fingers became a blur flying over the keys as she played the difficult hemidemisemiquavers of the allegro movement.

Did You Know?

Hemidemisemiquavers are the fastest musical notes that are commonly played, and performing them well can stretch human technique to its limit. The term is mainly used in Britain, where eighth notes are called "quavers," sixteenth notes are called "semiquavers," and thirty-second notes are called "demisemiquavers." In the United States, "hemidemisemiquaver" is likely to be used humorously, occurring especially as a clever substitute for "moment" or "bit," as in "the concert ended not a hemidemisemiquaver too soon."