Stab (music)

In music, a stab is a single staccato chord that adds dramatic impact to a composition. Stabs are usually provided by horns (real or synthesized) or an orchestral sample, usually occur on a 1-beat, and are frequently used in funk, freestyle, and ska.

As well, stabs are used in electronic music, in the form of tiny snippets of a song used as rhythmic accents in a new composition. Early Breakbeat Hardcore, such as Prodigy's Fire, and Hip hop in general made use of stabs.