Hemiolia

HEMIOLIA (Gr. ’Hµιόλιᴏs; Lat. Sesquialtera; Ital. Emiolia; Fr. Hemiole). Literally, the whole and a half; technically, the proportion of two to three. In this latter sense the word is used, in the musical terminology of the Middle Ages, to denote the Perfect Fifth, the sound of which is produced on the monochord by two-thirds of the open string. The term is also applied by writers of the 16th century to certain rhythmical proportions, corresponding to the triplets of modern music...