bourdon
[
b
oo
r
-dn,
bawr
-,
bohr
-]
/ˈbʊər dn, ˈbɔr-, ˈboʊr-/
noun
,
Music.
1.
the drone pipe of a bagpipe.
the drone string of a stringed instrument.
2.
a low-pitched tone; bass.
3.
a pipe organ stop of very low pitch.
4.
the bell in a carillon having the lowest pitch.
Origin
1350-1400;
Middle English
<
Middle French;
see
burden
2
British Dictionary definitions for
bourdon
bourdon
/
ˈbʊəd
ə
n;
ˈbɔːd
ə
n
/
noun
1.
a 16-foot organ stop of the stopped diapason type
2.
the drone of a bagpipe
3.
a drone or pedal point in the bass of a harmonized melody
Word Origin
C14: from Old French: drone (of a musical instrument), of imitative origin