The word ‘opus’ is Latin for ‘work’. When it comes to music, the term is included, along with a number, within the titles of individual compositions (or groups of compositions) to help identify a particular piece of work.
For example, Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 13 in E-flat major is identified as being linked to the German composer’s Moonlight Sonata by the pieces’ opus number – Opus 27, Number 1 and 2, respectively. The opus number pairs the two pieces together, while the following numbers establish the order of the compositions. Think of it as being similar to a book series with numbered volumes.
Opus is often abbreviated to ‘op’ within the title of a piece, and it should be noted that – due to the haphazard approach of many composers and publishers when it came to using opus numbers – the numbers themselves do not necessarily correlate to the chronological order in which the composers’ work was written or published.
Visit our musical terms dictionary to find out about other musical definitions you may not know.
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