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ca-den-za
n.
1. An extended virtuosic section for the soloist usually near the end of a movement of a concerto.
2. An improvised or written-out ornamental passage played or sung by a soloist, usually in a "free" rhythmic style and often allowing for virtuosic display.

[Italian, from Old Italian, cadence; see cadence.]




Cadenza often refers to a portion of a concerto in which the orchestra stops playing, leaving the soloist to play alone in free time without a strict, regular beat and can be written or improvised depending on what the composer specifies. It usually is the most elaborate and virtuosic part that the solo instrument plays during the whole piece (think 'classy predecessor of the guitar solo'). At the end of the cadenza, the orchestra re-enters and generally finishes off the movement on its own or with the solo instrument.

Some notable examples of cadenzas include the first five minutes of Tchaikovsky's First Piano Concerto in B-flat minor (with it's enormous chords), the beginning of Beethoven's Fifth Piano Concerto in E-flat major (where Beethoven in his typical style specifies the performer to play exactly as written rather than improvise) and - of course - the incredibly difficult and quite monumental toccata-like (or simply 'virtuosic') cadenza in the first movement of the infamous 'Rach 3' Concerto for Piano and Orchestra in D minor.