Robert Hilburn

One of my great frustrations for 35 years at the paper was the fact I couldn't play a record for the reader when I was writing about an artist. How can you describe the beauty of Emmylou Harris' voice without hearing it, the sensual lilt of a Duane Allman guitar solo without actually hearing it, or the growl of Johnny Rotten without hearing it?

American Critic

Eline Powell

I'm a bit of a melting pot, I try to speak British, but there's some European lilt - a not-so-conventional one because I'm Belgian, from the Flemish part. Dutch was my mother language, and I learned English, and I speak French, too.

Belgian Actress

Priyanka Chopra

I'm different. I don't speak perfect American. I do have a lilt of an Indian accent. I thought, 'Maybe the world's not okay with what I bring, being Indian.

Indian Actress

Emily Ratajkowski

I'm a big fan of the Irish accent. After a couple of drinks, I start to get a bit of an Irish lilt, too.

British Model

James Broughton

For me a poem has to sing out of itself and the lilt of it carries the magic.

American Director

Ellsworth Kelly

Geometry is moribund. I want a lilt and joy to art.

American Artist

Lilt often indicates a cheerful or soothing tone in speech or music, suggesting positive emotions.

Emotional Tone

In music, 'lilt' is sometimes associated with the lively and rhythmic traditional tunes of Ireland or Scotland.

Cultural Music

When speaking about someone's lilt, it usually refers to a distinctive, melodic way of speaking that's easy to hear.

Speech Rhythm

To lilt when speaking or singing can impart a subtle charm and grace to the delivery.

Subtle Charm

Musicians may lilt a tune to express joy or to make it sound light and airy.

Musical Performance

Lilting often conveys a sense of happiness or comfort without the need for explicit words.

Joyful Expressions

 of the freeway, or the top-right burner of your stove and that strange way that it clicks as it is preparing to light. When seeking melodic inspiration, look no further than dawn and dusk avian orchestras or to the natural lilt of emphatic language.