What is "song"

Song \Song\ (s[o^]ng; 115), n. [AS. song, sang, fr. singan to sing; akin to D. zang, G. sang, Icel. s["o]ngr, Goth. saggws. See Sing.]

1. That which is sung or uttered with musical modulations of the voice, whether of a human being or of a bird, insect, etc. ``That most ethereal of all sounds, the song of crickets.''
   --Hawthorne.

2. A lyrical poem adapted to vocal music; a ballad.

3. More generally, any poetical strain; a poem.

   The bard that first adorned our native tongue Tuned to his British lyre this ancient song.
   --Dryden.

4. Poetical composition; poetry; verse.

   This subject for heroic song.
   --Milton.

5. An object of derision; a laughingstock.

   And now am I their song, yea, I am their byword.
   --Job xxx. 9.

6. A trifle; an insignificant sum of money; as, he bought it for a song. ``The soldier's pay is a song.''
   --Silliman.

   Old song, a trifle; nothing of value. ``I do not intend to be thus put off with an old song.''
   --Dr. H. More.

   Song bird (Zo["o]l.), any singing bird; one of the Oscines.

   Song sparrow (Zo["o]l.), a very common North American sparrow ( Melospiza fasciata, or Melospiza melodia) noted for the sweetness of its song in early spring. Its breast is covered with dusky brown streaks which form a blotch in the center.

   Song thrush (Zo["o]l.), a common European thrush ( Turdus musicus), noted for its melodius song; -- called also mavis, throstle, and thrasher.

   Syn: Sonnet; ballad; canticle; carol; canzonet; ditty; hymn; descant; lay; strain; poesy; verse.

Old English sang "voice, song, art of singing; metrical composition adapted for singing, psalm, poem," from Proto-Germanic *sangwaz (cognates: Old Norse söngr, Norwegian song, Swedish sång, Old Saxon, Danish, Old Frisian, Old High German, German sang, Middle Dutch sanc, Dutch zang, Gothic saggws), from PIE *songwh-o- "singing, song," from *sengwh- "to sing, make an incantation" (see sing (v.)).\n

\nPhrase for a song "for a trifle, for little or nothing" is from "All's Well" III.ii.9 (the identical image, por du son, is in Old French. With a song in (one's) heart "feeling joy" is first attested 1930 in Lorenz Hart's lyric. Song and dance as a form of vaudeville act is attested from 1872; figurative sense of "rigmarole" is from 1895.

n. A musical composition with lyrics for voice or voices, performed by singing.

1. n. a short musical composition with words; "a successful musical must have at least three good songs"

2. a distinctive or characteristic sound; "the song of bullets was in the air"; "the song of the wind"; "the wheels sang their song as the train rocketed ahead"

3. the act of singing; "with a shout and a song they marched up to the gates" [syn: strain]

4. the characteristic sound produced by a bird; "a bird will not learn its song unless it hears it at an early age" [syn: birdcall, call, birdsong]

5. a very small sum; "he bought it for a song"

6. the imperial dynasty of China from 960 to 1279; noted for art and literature and philosophy [syn: Sung, Sung dynasty, Song dynasty]

A song is a musical composition for voice or voices.

Song or songs or The Song may also refer to:

Song is the pinyin transliteration of the Chinese family name 宋. It is transliterated as Sung in Wade-Giles, and Soong is also a common transliteration. In addition to being a common surname, it is also the name of a Chinese dynasty, the Song Dynasty, written with the same character.

Sòng (; Old Chinese: *) was a state during the Zhou dynasty of ancient China, with its capital at Shangqiu. The state was founded soon after King Wu of Zhou conquered the Shang dynasty to establish the Zhou dynasty in 1046/46 BC. It was conquered by the State of Qi in 286 BC, during the Warring States period. Confucius was a descendant of a Song nobleman who moved to the State of Lu.

Song is a Korean family name derived from the Chinese surname Song. Songs make up roughly 1.4% of the Korean population; the 2000 South Korean census found 622,208 in that country. The Chinese character for Song means " Song Dynasty".

Song is the third and final album of Lullaby for the Working Class. It was released October 19, 1999 on Bar/None Records.

A song, most broadly, is a single (and often standalone) work of music. More narrowly, a song is intended to be sung by the human voice with distinct and fixed pitches and patterns using sound and silence and a variety of forms that often include the repetition of sections. Written words created specifically for music or for which music is specifically created, are called lyrics. If a pre-existing poem is set to composed music in classical music it is an art song. Songs that are sung on repeated pitches without distinct contours and patterns that rise and fall are called chants. Songs in a simple style that are learned informally are often referred to as folk songs. Songs that are composed for professional singers are called popular songs. These songs, which have broad appeal, are often composed by professional songwriters, composers and lyricists. Art songs are composed by trained classical composers for concert performances. Songs are performed live and recorded. Songs may also appear in plays, musical theatre, stage shows of any form, and within operas.

A song may be for a solo singer, a lead singer supported by background singers, a duet, trio, or larger ensemble involving more voices singing in harmony, although the term is generally not used for large classical music vocal forms including opera and oratorio, which use terms such as aria and recitative instead. Songs with more than one voice to a part singing in polyphony or harmony are considered choral works. Songs can be broadly divided into many different forms, depending on the criteria used.

Songs may be written for one or more singers to sing without instrumental accompaniment or they may be written for performance with instrumental accompaniment. The accompaniment used for a song depends on the genre of music and, in classical styles, the instructions of the composer as set out in the musical score. Songs may be accompanied by a single accompanist playing piano or guitar, by a small ensemble (e.g., a jazz quartet, a basso continuo group, a rock or pop band or a rhythm section) or even a big band (for a jazz song) or orchestra (for a classical aria). One division is between " art songs", " pop songs" and traditional music which includes "folk songs" and early blues songs. Other common methods of classification are by purpose ( sacred vs secular), by style ( dance, ballad, Lied, etc.), or by time of origin ( Renaissance, Contemporary, etc.). Songs may be learned and passed on "by ear" (as in traditional folk songs); from a recording or lead sheet (in jazz and pop) or from detailed music notation (in classical music). While the term "song" usually refers to a sung melody, the term is also used in some instrumental music in which the composer wishes the performer to play in a singing style (e.g., Mendelssohn's Songs Without Words for solo piano.)

Song, LLC was a low-cost air service within an airline brand owned and operated by Delta Air Lines from 2003 to 2006.

Song's main focus was on leisure traffic between the northeastern United States and Florida, a market where it competed with JetBlue Airways. It also operated flights between Florida and the West Coast, and from the Northeast to the west coast.

Song's aircraft were fitted with leather seats and free personal entertainment systems at every seat, with audio MP3 programmable selections, trivia games that could be played against other passengers, a flight tracker, and satellite television (provided by the DISH Network). Song offered free beverages, but charged for meals and liquor. Both brand-name snack boxes and healthy organic meals were offered. The flight safety instructions were sung or otherwise artistically interpreted, depending on the cabin crew. In addition to crew uniforms designed by Kate Spade, customized cocktails created by nightlife impresario Rande Gerber and an in-flight exercise program designed by New York City fitness guru David Barton, the airline created its own distinct mark in the industry. The Song brand was placed on more than 200 flights a day which carried over ten million passengers.

Song's last flight took off on April 30, 2006. Service shifted to mainline Delta on May 1, 2006.

On January 1, 2008, Delta began repainting the last aircraft bearing the Song livery into mainline Delta Air Lines colors.