In music, the burden is an archaic term[1] for the drone or bass in some musical instruments, and the pipe or part that plays it, such as a bagpipe or pedal point in an organ. Burden also refers to a part of a song that is repeated at the end of each stanza, i.e. the chorus or refrain.
The term comes from the French bourdon, a staff; or a pipe made in the form of a staff, imitating the gross murmurs of bees or drones.
This is what was anciently called proslambanomenos.
This article incorporates content from the 1728 Cyclopaedia, a publication in the public domain.