English 'virtuoso' comes from Italian, from Late Latin 'virtuōsus' (virtuous), from Latin 'virtūs' (manliness, excellence), from 'vir' (man) — originally meaning 'a learned person' in English, narrowing to 'a supremely skilled musician' in the eighteenth century as Italian musical culture reshaped the word.
A person with exceptional skill in music or another artistic pursuit.
From Italian 'virtuoso' (skilled, talented, learned), from Late Latin 'virtuōsus' (virtuous, having virtues), from Latin 'virtūs' (manliness, valor, excellence, moral strength), from 'vir' (man). The word entered English first meaning 'a person of great learning or scientific interest' — the sense used by the Royal Society in the seventeenth century. The narrowing to 'a performer of exceptional musical skill' occurred
The word 'virtue' — and therefore 'virtuoso' — contains the Latin word for 'man' at its core. In Roman thought, 'virtūs' was literally 'manliness,' the qualities expected of a Roman male: courage, discipline, and moral firmness. The gendered origin has been thoroughly obscured by centuries