How to Use alto in a Sentence

alto

1 of 2 noun
Definition of altonext
  • She sang in her school choir as an alto.
  • The soprano loves the tenor, who loves the bass, who loves the alto, who loves the soprano.
    — Helen Shaw, Vulture, 8 Dec. 2021
  • Emily played trombone in the marching band and sang alto in the choir.
    — Beth Mlady, cleveland, 7 May 2020
  • The alto hung in with the grim passion that only mezzos can aspire to.
    — Kevin Fisher-Paulson, SFChronicle.com, 16 June 2020
  • His brother Alan played trumpet and alto alongside him in the school band.
    — Chris Morris, Variety, 2 Mar. 2023
  • Liz Gillies, a longtime friend, plays the husky alto to Grande’s breathy soprano.
    — Richard S. He, Billboard, 27 Apr. 2018
  • In choirs like mine, women sing the alto and soprano parts.
    — Elizabeth Preston, Discover Magazine, 29 Mar. 2013
  • So did Carole Rae Woodmansee, an alto who was a few years younger and had sung with the chorale for more than a decade.
    — New York Times, 8 Apr. 2021
  • On his right sat the Hoffman twins, Lorraine on alto clarinet and Florraine on the bassoon.
    — Star Tribune, 3 July 2021
  • The sopranos would be two women dancers; altos, a woman and a man; tenors, a man and a woman; and basses, two men.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 18 Oct. 2019
  • Even choral groups’ alto and bass sections have had problems projecting at The Schnitz.
    — oregonlive, 27 Sep. 2021
  • Mikell, an alto, is staying with family in Philly during the run.
    — John Timpane, Philly.com, 21 May 2018
  • Debbie Amos, another alto, had learned how subtle changes to the shape of her mouth shaded her tone.
    — New York Times, 8 Apr. 2021
  • Williamson speaks in a husky alto with a cadence that is part meditation guide and part preacher.
    — Robin Givhan, Washington Post, 27 June 2019
  • Dawn McCarthy, whose Faun Fables opens the evening, lends her dark alto to the song and is answered by distant, ghoulish laughter.
    — Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader, 31 May 2018
  • His alto has a big broad tone, at times reminiscent of the bluesy tenor saxophones that came from Chicago in the late ’50s and early ’60s.
    — Martin Johnson, WSJ, 17 Jan. 2019
  • Jenkin is fond of saying that in the choir there are only four parties: sopranos, altos, tenors, and basses.
    — Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 5 Nov. 2019
  • Sung in a low alto in isiZulu, one of the official languages of South Africa, audiences didn’t need to understand the song to be moved by it.
    — Lynsey Chutel, New York Times, 7 July 2023
  • Countertenors, males of the species who sing in the range of a female alto, continue to be the growth industry in classical music.
    — John Von Rhein, chicagotribune.com, 17 Apr. 2018
  • Wisniewski, an alto sang with the Cantus at the three performances.
    — Sam Boyer, cleveland, 27 Dec. 2021
  • Thomas was the alto sax player, flutist and percussionist.
    — Jeff McDonald, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Aug. 2021
  • Choose from five drink types: espresso, double espresso, gran lungo, mug and alto.
    — Nicole Papantoniou, Good Housekeeping, 8 July 2022
  • Yet the alto saxophonist ranks high in the pantheon of American...
    — John Edward Hasse, WSJ, 26 Aug. 2020
  • The alto saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins is in pursuit of epiphany.
    — Sheldon Pearce, The New Yorker, 1 Feb. 2022
  • Here’s your chance to catch up with two young alto saxophonists, both with histories in the Midwest and promising futures in New York City.
    — New York Times, 26 Jan. 2017
  • By the second verse, pockets of harmony were heard as some voices broke into alto and tenor, bass and soprano.
    — Kim Ode, idahostatesman, 28 July 2017
  • Daniel Bubeck was a rather hooty version of a countertenor — and there’s little evidence that Bach had his alto solos sung by falsettists, as opposed to boys.
    — Scott Cantrell, Dallas News, 1 May 2023
  • She was known for her powerful alto voice and often was called upon to help a section by playing a note or two on the piano for pitch purposes.
    — Frederick N. Rasmussen, baltimoresun.com, 8 Aug. 2021
  • Quigley chose to mix his singers up, rather than segregate them by soprano, alto, tenor and bass sections, which resulted in a smoother blend of voices.
    — Zachary Lewis, cleveland.com, 21 Aug. 2017
  • Musicians in the group actually play a range of instruments in the flute family, including the piccolo as well as the alto, bass and the C-flute.
    — Barbara Dargis, Daily Southtown, 3 Mar. 2018
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alto

2 of 2 adjective
  • He plays the alto sax.
  • Dexter took up the alto sax at 14, switching at 15 to the tenor that his mother bought him to fit his tall frame.
    — Clifford Thompson, WSJ, 1 Nov. 2018
  • The women will sing in the alto section when the 150-member chorus tours New York City this week.
    — Jennifer Conn, Akron Reporter, cleveland.com, 23 Jan. 2018
  • Marsalis took the lead on a trio of pieces, playing alto saxophone.
    — Matthew J. Palm, orlandosentinel.com, 29 Sep. 2019
  • The Turtles Cyrus' strong alto range lent itself well to her melancholy take on this hit.
    — Allison Stubblebine, Billboard, 6 Oct. 2017
  • At Poway High, Alexander plays alto sax in the jazz and concert bands and is the first student with autism to play all four years in the marching band.
    — Pam Kragen, sandiegouniontribune.com, 26 Jan. 2018
  • Chris Hangan, a senior who plays alto saxophone, has performed on the beach for five years now.
    — Fred Swegles, Orange County Register, 15 May 2017
  • How should the musical issues in the alto parts of the choruses be resolved?
    — Ellen T. Harris, New York Times, 15 Dec. 2017
  • Volunteers must be 18 or older, able to read music and able to play the oboe, clarinet, alto sax or tenor sax.
    — Megan Becka, cleveland.com, 14 Aug. 2017
  • With alto saxophone and clarinets in tow, Noriega has been the man to call when the heavy guns of the new-jazz scene need extra firepower.
    — The New Yorker, 31 Mar. 2017
  • Mr. Harrison, a guiding light in the world of New Orleans culture, has a slippery and groove-soaked approach to the alto saxophone.
    — New York Times, 24 Aug. 2017
  • Soprano sax, of all the instruments in the world ever probably, has fallen more out of fashion than even the alto sax.
    — Nick Williams, Billboard, 18 May 2017
  • Sarah Gliko is especially marvelous, her flute and alto sax both lyrical and choked.
    — John Timpane, Philly.com, 2 Nov. 2017
  • Thomas Brill knew how to play the piano, organ, violin, flute and alto saxophone, his sister said.
    — Michael Williams, orlandosentinel.com, 3 June 2019
  • What Bird did with his alto saxophone Jordan still does with her voice — not as fast, of course, but with similar timelessness.
    — Howard Reich, chicagotribune.com, 21 Apr. 2018
  • But don’t go thinking that the alto saxophonist’s influence has waned.
    — Joe Klopus, kansascity, 17 Aug. 2017
  • The alto saxophone has played a significant role in the development of the classical, jazz, avant-garde, salsa, and punk-rock genres.
    — Colin Stetson, The New Yorker, 18 May 2017
  • With a searing alto tone that can flare from blue flame glow to bright orange grit within a phrase, Fuller has emerged as a formidable bandleader over the past decade, with four impressive albums on Mack Avenue Records.
    — Andrew Gilbert, The Mercury News, 5 June 2019
  • David Caceres delighted the crowd with his vocal rendition of Dindi and his alto saxophone.
    — Ann Benoit, NOLA.com, 6 Feb. 2018
  • Fellow sophomore Emmanuel Fesili plays drums and alto saxophone, plus a little guitar and bass, Lui said.
    — Dave Southorn, idahostatesman, 1 Nov. 2017
  • An alto saxophonist hailing from Cuba, Mr. Filiú is not heard often enough as a leader.
    — New York Times, 10 May 2018
  • Robinson, who plays the alto sax, said hopefully their concerts will encourage youngsters to pursue music themselves.
    — Forrest Sellers, Cincinnati.com, 3 Aug. 2017
  • The golden notes of Harjo’s alto saxophone fill the dark corners of a drab university auditorium as the audience breathes in her music.
    — Élan Young, Smithsonian, 13 Aug. 2019
  • In his teens, Alexander began showing great proficiency playing jazz music on the alto saxophone.
    — Pam Kragen, sandiegouniontribune.com, 26 Jan. 2018
  • Another trait that evokes Evans’ style is some use of unconventional – for a jazz big band – instrumentation, like accordion and alto clarinet.
    — Dan Emerson, Twin Cities, 17 Feb. 2017
  • The alto saxophonist Mat Walerian seems to have a cooling effect on Matthew Shipp, an influential pianist whose free-form playing can be effusive to the point of pugnacious.
    — Jon Pareles, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2018
  • Eventually, Segal moved the celebration to August and expanded it to run the full month, a fitting tribute to the greatest alto saxophone virtuoso in jazz and a co-founder of the predominant jazz language of the 20th century.
    — Howard Reich, chicagotribune.com, 30 July 2019
  • Shania has the robust alto twang of a country singer and the cadence of a woman from Ontario, while Celine’s powerful soprano voice has an incomparable range and delightful French-Canadian accent.
    — Lisa Ryan, The Cut, 20 June 2017
  • Bobby Selvaggio 4: Frontman Bobby Selvaggio presides as one of the leading alto saxophone voices on today's jazz scene.
    — Chuck Yarborough, cleveland.com, 1 June 2017
  • At its heart was a delicate balance between Zenon’s famously translucent tone on alto saxophone and Aldana’s intrinsically beefier sound on tenor.
    — Howard Reich, chicagotribune.com, 2 Sep. 2019

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'alto.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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