machicotage

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. In medieval music, the practice or effect of adding passing-notes and other embellishments to a plain-song melody.

Wiktionary

1. n. rare, archaic A style of singing, especially of sacred music, cultivated from the late Middle Ages until the 19th century, centered on Paris, and derived from the Gallican ritual; in this style vocal lines are decorated with improvised ornamentation, and differentiated from each other in a polyphonic composition also by tone color.