Tempo

:This article is about tempo in music. For tempo in chess, see Tempo (chess).

Italian tempo markings

See also Italian musical terms.

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Basic tempo markings

The most common tempo markings in Italian are:

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• Largo - slowly and broadly
• Adagio - slowly
• Lento - "slow" but usually only moderately so
• Andante - at a walking pace
• Moderato - at a moderate tempo
• Allegretto - "a little allegro", understood to be not quite as fast as allegro
• Allegro - quickly
• Presto - fast

Common Qualifiers

• non troppo - not too much; e.g. Allegro non troppo (or Allegro ma non troppo) means "Fast, but not too fast."
• molto - very, as in Allegro molto
• poco - slightly, as in Poco Adagio
• Various diminutive suffixes in Italian have been used, in addition to Allegretto: Andantino, Larghetto, Adagietto, as well as superlatives such as Larghissimo, Prestissimo.

Mood markings with a tempo connotation

Some markings that primarily mark a mood (or character) also have a tempo connotation:

Related Topics:
Mood - Character

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• Vivace - lively (which generally indicates a rather fast movement)
• Maestoso - majestic or stately (which is generally a solemn slow movement)

Terms for change in tempo

There is also a set of terms that are used to designate a change of tempo:

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• Accelerando - speeding up (abbreviation: accel.)
• Meno Mosso - less movement or slower
• Più Mosso - more movement or faster
• Rallentando - slowing down (abbreviation: rall.)
• Ritardando - slowing down (abbreviation: rit.)
• Ritenuto - slightly slower

These generally designate a gradual change in tempo; for immediate tempo shifts, composers normally just provide the designation for the new tempo. There is also:

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• A tempo - return to the previous tempo after change(s); and
• Tempo I - often at the beginning of a new section of a piece, denotes a return to the piece's original tempo.

These terms also indicate an immediate, not a gradual, tempo change. Composers typically use these terms for tempo change even if they have written their initial tempo marking in some other language.

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More complex and less precise (though vital in many composers' music) is:

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• Rubato - free adjustment of tempo for expressive purposes