序曲

• 読み: じょきょく
• ローマ字: jokyoku
• 漢字の分解: 序 (jo) — preface, beginning; 曲 (kyoku) — piece of music, melody
• 発音: /dʑo.kʲoː.kɯ/

意味

Overture; prelude; an introductory piece that precedes a larger musical or literary work.

In music, 序曲 refers to an orchestral overture performed before an opera, oratorio, or dramatic work, setting the emotional tone and often introducing thematic material. By metaphorical extension, the term is used in literary contexts to describe an introductory section or poem that prefaces a larger collection or narrative. The dual usage reflects its versatility as a structural metaphor.

例文

1. オペラの序曲は劇の開始前に演奏され、作品全体の雰囲気を予告する役割を担う。
2. この連作詩集の冒頭に置かれた序曲が、以降の詩群への鍵を握っている。
3. 管弦楽の序曲だけを集めたコンサートが、音楽ファンの間で人気を集めている。

使い方ガイド

場面: music, opera, literary structure

トーン: neutral

起源と歴史

Compound of 序 (jo, preface/beginning/order) and 曲 (kyoku, piece of music/melody). A Meiji-era borrowing concept for the Western musical overture (from Italian sinfonia or French ouverture). The character 序 is also used in 序文 (preface) and 序論 (introduction), reinforcing its sense of a beginning that frames what follows.

文化的背景

時代: Meiji–Modern

世代: Adults

社会的背景: Educated