From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishaltoal‧to1 /ˈæltəʊ $ -toʊ/ adjective an alto instrument or voice produces notes at the second highest level, below a soprano an alto sax
Examples from the Corpus
alto• Baritone saxophone, alto clarinet. b. Lovejoy, Illinois, 16 Sep 1940.• Bartz's father ran a local jazz club, and Gary got an alto sax at eleven years of age.• He played alto sax until he was sixteen, then switched to tenor.• Here the quartet is joined by another frontman, alto saxophonist Lee Konitz.altoalto2 noun (plural altos) 1 [countable] a singing voice that is lower than a soprano, or a singer with a voice like this2 [singular] the part of a musical work that is written for an alto voice or instrument → baritone1(2), bass1(2), soprano1(2), tenor1(2)Examples from the Corpus
alto• Her choirmaster said her voice, now a low alto, was just too low.• Her rich alto, at 49, is as strong as ever.Origin alto (1500-1600) Italian “high”, from Latin altus; → ALTITUDE 