What is "potpourri"

Potpourri \Pot`pour`ri"\, n. [F., fr. pot pot + pourri, p. p. of pourrir to rot, L. putrere. Cf. Olla-podrida.] A medley or mixture. Specifically:

1. A ragout composed of different sorts of meats, vegetables, etc., cooked together.

2. A jar or packet of flower leaves, perfumes, and spices, used to scent a room.

3. A piece of music made up of different airs strung together; a medley.

4. A literary production composed of parts brought together without order or bond of connection.

also pot-pourri, 1610s, "mixed meats served in a stew," from French pot pourri "stew," literally "rotten pot" (loan-translation of Spanish olla podrida), from pourri, past participle of pourrir "to rot," from Vulgar Latin *putrire, from Latin putrescere "grow rotten" (see putrescent). Notion of "medley" led to meaning "mixture of dried flowers and spices," first recorded in English 1749. Figurative sense (originally in music) of "miscellaneous collection" is recorded from 1855.

n. 1 A collection of various things; an assortment, mixed bag or motley. 2 An anthology of miscellaneous prose. 3 (context music English) A medley of songs or music. 4 A mixture of dried fragrant plant material, often in a decorative bowl, used to scent a room.

1. n. a collection containing a variety of sorts of things; "a great assortment of cars was on display"; "he had a variety of disorders"; "a veritable smorgasbord of religions" [syn: assortment, mixture, mixed bag, miscellany, miscellanea, variety, salmagundi, smorgasbord, motley]

2. a musical composition consisting of a series of songs or other musical pieces from various sources [syn: medley, pastiche]

3. a jar of mixed flower petals and spices used as perfume

Potpourri is a mixture of dried, naturally fragrant plant material, used to provide a gentle natural scent inside buildings, most commonly in residential settings. It is usually placed in a decorative (often wooden) bowl, or tied in small sachet made from sheer fabric.

Potpourri is used inside the home to give the air a pleasant smell. The word "potpourri" comes into English from the French word pot-pourri. The French term has two connotations. It is the French name for a Spanish stew with a wide variety of ingredients called " olla podrida," specialty of the town of Burgos. The word was taken and copied by the French military during the Napoleonic occupation of Burgos (1808-1813). Literally, however, the word pot in French has the same meaning as it does in Spanish and English, while the word pourri means rotten. In English, "potpourri" is often used to refer to any collection of miscellaneous or diverse items.

Potpourri is the 1981 third album of Japanese band P-Model.

Potpourri or Pot-Pourri (; French, literally "putrid pot") is a kind of musical form structured as ABCDEF..., the same as medley or, sometimes, fantasia. It is often used in light, easy-going and popular types of music.

This is a form of arrangement where the individual sections are simply juxtaposed with no strong connection or relationship. This type of form is organized by the principle of non- repetition. This is usually to be applied to a composition that consists of a string of favourite tunes, like a potpourri based on either some popular opera, operetta, or a collection of songs, dances, etc.

The term has been in use since the beginning of the 18th century, or to be more specific, since it was used by the French music publisher Christophe Ballard (1641–1715) for the edition of a collection of pieces in 1711. In the 18th century the term was used in France for collections of songs which, with a thematic link, were sometimes given stage presentation. Later the term was used also for instrumental collections, like the "Potpourry français", a collection of originally unconnected dance pieces issued by the publisher Bouïn.

Potpourris became especially popular in the 19th century. The opera overtures of French composers, such as François-Adrien Boïeldieu (1775–1834), Daniel Auber (1782–1871) and Ferdinand Hérold (1791–1833), or the Englishman Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900) belong to this type. Richard Strauss called the overture to his Die schweigsame Frau a "pot-pourri".

The "overtures" to light modern stage works (e.g. operettas or musicals) are almost always written in potpourri form, using airs from the work in question. There is usually some structure to the order presented though. The opening is usually a fanfare or majestic theme (presumably the supposed hoped-for most popular song number), followed by a romantic number, then a comical number; and finally a return to the opening theme or a variation thereof.

Potpourri is a 1974 big band jazz album recorded by the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra and released on the Philadelphia International Records label. The album was nominated for a 1975 Grammy award in the category, "Best Jazz Performance - Big Band" and Thad Jones' arrangement of "Living for the City" was also nominated in the Best Instrumental Arrangement category that same year.

Potpourri or Pot-Pourri may refer to:

• Potpourri, a mixture of dried, naturally fragrant plant material
• Potpourri, old, from French pot-pourri, the old name of the Pot-au-feu
• Synthetic marijuana
• Potpourri (The Thad Jones / Mel Lewis Orchestra album), 1974
• Potpourri (P-Model album), 1981
• Pot-Pourri (group), an Australian opera/musical theatre group
• Potpourri (music), a kind of musical form structured as ABCDEF...
• The Potpourri, a Texas weekly newspaper covering two communities Northwest of Houston
• Akrobatisches Potpourri, an 1895 German silent film / documentary
• Potpourrii, a 2008 puzzle video game