pedal point
noun Music.
a tone sustained by one part, usually the bass, while other parts progress without reference to it.
a passage containing it.
Also called
organ point,
pedal note.
Origin of pedal point
First recorded in 1875–80
Words nearby pedal point
pedagogy,
pedal,
pedal boat,
pedal keyboard,
pedal piano,
pedal point,
pedal pushers,
pedal steel guitar,
pedalfer,
pedalo,
pedant
Example sentences from the Web for organ point
This is the best part of it—a fugal Gloria, ending with a pedal-point.
The Nebuly Coat |John Meade FalknerIn the middle section you have done something new and good; the alternating chords above the pedal-point, rather la Russlan.
The Life & Letters of Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky |Modeste TchaikovskyAngelus bells in pedal-point continue through a period of hope and prayer; but remorse again takes sway.
Contemporary American Composers |Rupert Hughes
British Dictionary definitions for organ point
pedal point
/ (ˈpɛdəl) /
noun
music
a sustained bass note, over which the other parts move bringing about changing harmonies
Often shortened to: pedal