Ornamentation is a system of decorations with which the main melody is embellished: small additional notes, “curls,” and “lacework” that give the musical line refinement, motion, and brilliance. Ornaments include the trill, the mordent, the turn, the grace note, and others.
The art of ornamentation reached its summit in the Baroque era, where decoration was an inseparable part of performance — musicians often improvised the ornaments themselves, and their precise execution demanded a special mastery. Ornamentation is important in folk music too: inimitable ornaments are characteristic of the singing and playing of many traditions, notably the sharp, “curling” decorations of the Ukrainian Hutsul fiddle and sopilka. Ornamentation transforms a simple melody into a sumptuous lacework, giving it individuality and living breath.
