Concert n. (as in “a rock concert”) comes from the Italian concertare - to accord together, to tune or harmonize together, or to play music together.
[But what about a concert by a solo musician? How is that a case of people playing together? It isn’t, which is why a solo performance is traditionally called a recital, not a concert.]
The noun concert can also mean agreement or harmony; this is a natural extension of the idea of musical harmony.
To do something, not necessarily musical, in concert is to do so by acting jointly.
Concert v. is a rare, formal verb that means to plan or arrange together, by mutual agreement (i.e. “in concert”).
Concerted adj.: planned, arranged, or carried out in collaboration; coordinated. Only two or more parties – people, countries, whatever – can make “a concerted effort.” Hence the title of today’s post.
Disconcert v.: to unsettle someone: disturb someone’s complacency or emotional composure. This is not a precise opposite of the English verb concert, but the meaning of disconcert does make sense from the etymology. The prefix dis- here indicates reversal. To disconcert someone is to reverse the harmonious, peaceful emotional state that is suggested by the Italian verb concertare.
Disconcerting and disconcerted are adjectives straightforwardly derived from the verb disconcert.
It is interesting to see the connections between the original Latin word and its varied modern forms and uses. I have one criticism. I don’t think it is correct to posit that the verb “concertare” suggests a “harmonious, peaceful emotional state.” According to the “Lewis and Short” Latin dictionary, “concertare” means “to contend with any one zealously or warmly’ and “to dispute, debate.” To me, this means that the debate is good-natured, but not necessarily “harmonious” or “peaceful.” It actually could be loud and rambunctious! I could be accused of being persnickety, but even so, I believe I am raising a fair point. Often when a word comes into English, its connotation changes and it can gain or lose an emotional dimension. This is where the excitement of etymology comes into play, so the more accurate we can be about when the changes happen and how, the more we can appreciate words. Your blog is great. Keep writing entries!
Good point, Sasha! What everybody does seem to agree on is that concert came to us from Middle French concerter, which in turn came from Old Italian concertare. The OED agrees with you that a link to the Latin concertare is uncertain:
I based the original version of this post on Webster’s Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged; henceforth I’ll be sure to check the OED as well!
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