Tempo in Music

11 Oct

Tempo is an indication of the speed or pace of the piece of music. Tempo is a crucial element of any music composition, as it can affect the mood and feels of a piece of music. It is normally given at the beginning of the music in English or Italian. Tempo is Italian word for “time.” Italian has been the International language of music for many years, since many of the most important Composers of the 17th century were Italian, and this period was when Tempo indications in words were used extensively. Today English is normally found in more recent modern music.

Music Tempo in English Words

English words, such as “quickly,” have also been used, among many others with fairly obvious meanings. In Jazz and Popular Music, words written below may appear:

  • Very Slowly
  • Slow
  • Ballad
  • Laid Back
  • Steady or Steady Rock
  • March
  • Moderate or Medium
  • Medium Up
  • Brightly
  • Lively
  • Quickly
  • Rather Fast
  • Very Fast

Music Tempo in Italian words

Here some common Italian words used for Tempo with some English meanings:

  • Larghissimo = very, very slow
  • Lento or Largo = very slow
  • Largo = very slow
  • Larghetto = rather broadly
  • Grave = slow and solemn
  • Adagio = slow calm and stately (Italian verb for “at ease”)
  • Adagietto = rather slow
  • Andante = slow easy (Italian verb for “walk”, hence sometimes described as a “walking” speed)
  • Andante Moderato = a bit faster than andante
  • Andantino – slightly faster than andante
  • Moderato = moderately, not too fast and not too slow
  • Allegretto = moderately fast (but less so than Allegro)
  • Allegro moderato = moderately quick
  • Allegro = fast, bright or “March Tempo” (Italian verb for “lively” or “cheerfully, hence sometimes described as a “running” speed)
  • Vivace = lively and fast (quicker than Allegro)
  • Vivacissimo = very fast and lively
  • Allegrissimo = very fast
  • Presto = very fast
  • Prestissimo = extremely fast

All of Italian Tempo above are based on a few root words. By adding an -issimo ending the word is amplified/made louder, by adding an -ino ending the word is diminished/made softer, and by adding an -etto ending the word is endeared.

French and Germany also used to describe a Tempo on a piece of music when their Composers written a piece of music. More complete list of Tempo words can be found in the Harvard Dictionary of Music.

Beats Per Minute (BPM) and Metronome

More accurate Tempo sometimes given in Classical piece of music. A Note sign and a number tell how many beats of that type of Note there are to be played in a minute. It is conventionally referred to BPM (Beats Per Minute).

eighty-eight Quarter Note Beats

In the Note sign above, it means there should be eighty-eight quarter Note beats in a minute. This allow singer or player to guess the speed or tempo of music. More accurate measure is using a clockwork instrument called a Metronome. Metronome can be set to tick as the speed required.

Changes in Music Tempo

Music sometimes changes speed to match a change of mood or feels, or to create a dramatic effect. If Tempo of given piece of music suddenly changes into a completely different Tempo, there will be a new tempo given, usually marked in the same way (metronome tempo, Italian term, etc.) as the original tempo.

Gradual changes in the music Tempo are also common, and these have their own set of terms. These terms commonly appear below the Staff. These terms can also appear with modifiers like Molto (very)

The following words and abbreviated words are written where the change is to take place:

  • Accelerando (abbrev. Accel.) = accelerating; getting faster
  • Ritardando – (abbrev. Ritard. or Rit.) = slowing down
  • Ritenuto (abbrev. Riten.) = slower
  • Rallentando (abbrev. Rall.) = gradually slower
  • Rubato = don’t be too strict with the rhythm; while keeping the original Tempo, allow the music to gently speed up and slow down in ways that emphasize the phrasing
  • Poco a poco = little by little; gradually
  • Tempo I (Tempo One or Tempo Primo or simply A Tempo) = back to the original Tempo or speed

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