Definition of "celesta" [celesta]

• A musical instrument with a keyboard and metal plates struck by hammers that produce bell-like tones. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "A '' 'celesta' '' or '' 'celeste' '' ([[France | French]]: '' heavenly '') is a percussion instrument with a piano-like keyboard, connected to hammers which strike a graduated set of steel plates suspended over wooden resonators."
• "Spine-tingling effects pour out of the orchestra pit: steamy strings, creepy celesta, slippery harp, fluttery piccolo, tender soprano and alto flutes, seductive bass and treble clarinets, and a battery of heart-palpitating percussion instruments."
• "In the far corner, meanwhile, is Biophilia's "gameleste" – a celesta rebuilt with brass to mimic the sounds of the south-east Asian gamelan."