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An essential instrumental part that cannot be omitted — often a prominent solo line accompanying a vocal melody.
Appears in titles and part labels — “Violino obbligato”, “Aria con Flauto obbligato”, “obbl.” — naming an instrument whose part must be played, often a solo line woven around the voice; the opposite of an ad libitum part. Some nineteenth-century popular songs used it loosely for an optional added part, so read it against the period.
Abbreviations: obbl., obb.
An obbligato instrument creates a dialogue with the voice or solo. Write it as a genuine countermelody — independent enough to interest on its own, but complementary to the main line. The obbligato should breathe when the voice sings and fill gaps when the voice rests.
Bach's "Erbarme dich" from the St. Matthew Passion — the solo violin obbligato weaves an anguished countermelody around the alto voice.
Obbligato is one of 1760 terms in the Gradus musical dictionary: the words, abbreviations and instrument names that appear in printed scores, plus the vocabulary composers use to talk about them.
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