Italian music terms and their meanings
Italian is the common language of tempo, dynamics and expression in printed music, and its markings are understood everywhere.
Tempo and Pacing · Dynamics and Expression · Articulation and Technique · Navigation and Ensemble · Musical Concepts and Score Vocabulary
Italian terms for tempo and pacing
| Italian | English | Usage note |
|---|---|---|
| lento | Slow | General slow tempo direction |
| molto lento | Very slow | Degree of slowness depends on style |
| largo | Broadly | Broad in tempo and character. In Spanish, largo means long. |
| adagio | Slow and expressive | Widely shared historical tempo word |
| andante | At a walking pace | Not a fixed metronome value |
| moderato | Moderately | Moderate tempo or intensity |
| allegro | Quickly | Often conveys lively character as well as speed |
| vivace | Lively | Animated, energetic character |
| presto | Very quickly | Fast tempo direction |
| con moto | With movement | Encourages forward motion |
| più mosso | More movement | Increase the sense of motion |
| meno mosso | Less movement | Reduce the sense of motion |
| accelerando | Gradually faster | Tempo increases progressively |
| rallentando | Gradually slower | Tempo decreases progressively |
| ritenuto | Hold back | More immediate restraint than a gradual rallentando |
| a tempo | Return to tempo | Resume prior established tempo |
| tempo primo | First tempo | Return to original tempo |
| liberamente | Freely | Interpretive flexibility within context |
| rubato | With flexible time | Expressive redistribution of time |
| tempo rigoroso | Strictly in time | Discourages expressive tempo fluctuation |
Italian terms for dynamics and expression
| Italian | English | Usage note |
|---|---|---|
| piano | Soft | Common notation uses p, regardless of language |
| pianissimo | Very soft | Common notation uses pp |
| mezzo piano | Moderately soft | Common notation uses mp |
| mezzo forte | Moderately loud | Common notation uses mf |
| forte | Loud | Common notation uses f |
| fortissimo | Very loud | Common notation uses ff |
| crescendo | Gradually louder | Also indicated by an opening hairpin |
| diminuendo | Gradually softer | Also indicated by a closing hairpin |
| subito piano | Suddenly soft | Immediate dynamic contrast |
| subito forte | Suddenly loud | Immediate dynamic contrast |
| con forza | With force | Strongly energized attack or character |
| dolcemente | Sweetly | Gentle character, not necessarily a specific dynamic |
| tranquillo | Calmly | Serene or settled character |
| espressivo | Expressively | Calls for expressive shaping |
| con sentimento | With feeling | Emotional character |
| cantabile | Singing style | Phrase as if sung |
| giocoso | Playfully | Light, playful character |
| maestoso | Majestically | Dignified and grand character |
| con brio | With energy | Spirited character |
| agitato | Agitated | Restless, urgent character |
| misterioso | Mysteriously | Suggests enigmatic character |
| teneramente | Tenderly | Gentle, affectionate character |
| appassionato | Passionately | Intense expressive character |
| solenne | Solemnly | Ceremonial or serious character |
| leggiero | Lightly | Light articulation or touch |
Italian terms for articulation and technique
| Italian | English | Usage note |
|---|---|---|
| pesante | Heavily | Weighty touch or character |
| sostenuto | Sustained | Support notes and phrases. In Spanish, sostenido also means sharp (♯). |
| staccato | Detached | Separate the notes; length depends on context. French détaché is a bowing, not staccato. |
| legato | Connected | Smoothly connected tones |
| marcato | Marked | Clearly emphasized attacks |
| accentato | Accented | Emphasized note or gesture |
| tenuto | Full length | Often full value or gentle emphasis |
| portato | Separated but connected | Intermediate articulation; instrument-dependent |
| staccatissimo | Very short | Shorter, more emphatic detachment |
| scorrevole | Flowing | Flowing passagework |
| distinto | Clearly | Articulate each note clearly |
| fermata | With a pause | Hold beyond notated value; duration is contextual |
| respirare | Take a breath | Breath or phrasing separation |
| cesura | Pause in the flow | Momentary break, often shown by caesura sign |
| cantato | Sung | Sung rather than spoken |
| parlato | Spoken | Spoken rather than sung delivery |
| sussurrato | Whispered | Quiet speech-like vocal effect |
| senza vibrato | Without vibrato | Avoid deliberate pitch oscillation |
| con vibrato | With vibrato | Apply vibrato as stylistically appropriate |
| con sordino | With mute | Use a mute; device varies by instrument |
| senza sordino | Without mute | Remove mute |
| pizzicato | Plucked | Pluck bowed-string instrument |
| arco | Bowed | Resume bowing |
| sul ponticello | Near bridge | Bowed-string contact near bridge |
| sul tasto | Over fingerboard | Bowed-string contact over fingerboard |
| col legno | With bow wood | Battuto strikes the strings with the wood; tratto draws it across them. |
| armonico naturale | Natural harmonic | String lightly touched at node |
| tremolo | Tremolo | Rapid repetition or alternation; may be measured |
| trillo | Trill | Rapid alternation with neighbor note |
| gruppetto | Turn | Ornament around principal pitch |
| acciaccatura | Short grace note | A crushed grace note, played as quickly as possible |
| glissando | Slide | Continuous or discrete pitch transition by instrument |
| portamento | Expressive slide | Audible connection between pitches |
| arpeggiato | Spread chord | Sound chord tones successively |
| ripetere | Repeat | Play material again |
Italian terms for navigation and ensemble
| Italian | English | Usage note |
|---|---|---|
| da capo | From the beginning | Navigation back to opening |
| dal segno | From the sign | Return to segno |
| alla coda | To the coda | Jump to closing passage when directed |
| fine | End | Marks designated conclusion |
| prima volta | First time | First repeat ending |
| seconda volta | Second time | Second repeat ending |
| tutti | All together | Full ensemble or section |
| solo | Alone | A single featured player or part |
| divisi | Divided | Section divides into separate parts |
| unisono | Unison | Same musical line. German einstimmig means one-part, not unison. |
| facoltativo | Optional | Performer may omit or choose part |
| come prima | As before | Return to earlier manner |
| simile | Similar manner | Continue established pattern |
| senza misura | Without measure | Free, non-barred timing |
| improvvisato | Improvised | Material created in performance |
| alla maniera di | In the style of | Points to a style to imitate |
| con la voce | With the voice | Vocal participation or imitation |
| con pedale | With the pedal | Use sustain pedal in context |
| senza pedale | Without pedal | Do not use sustain pedal |
| una corda | Soft pedal | Grand-piano left pedal; instrument mechanism varies |
| tre corde | Release soft pedal | Release the soft pedal. |
| corde vuote | Open strings | Use unstopped strings |
| mano destra | With the right hand | Keyboard or instrumental hand indication |
Italian terms for musical concepts and score vocabulary
| Italian | English | Usage note |
|---|---|---|
| mano sinistra | With the left hand | Keyboard or instrumental hand indication |
| registro acuto | High register | Upper part of an instrument’s range |
| registro grave | Low register | Lower part of an instrument’s range |
| registro medio | Middle register | Central part of instrumental range |
| ascendente | Ascending | Moving toward higher pitches |
| discendente | Descending | Moving toward lower pitches |
| cromatico | Chromatic | Movement involving semitone pitches |
| diatonico | Diatonic | Belonging to a seven-note diatonic collection |
| tonalità maggiore | Major key | Major tonal center |
| tonalità minore | Minor key | Minor tonal center |
| indicazione di misura | Time signature | Written metric organization. Italian indicazione di tempo means a tempo marking. |
| armatura di chiave | Key signature | Default pitch alterations at beginning of staff |
| battuta | Measure | Metrical segment between barlines |
| pulsazione | Beat | Underlying recurring pulse |
| frase | Phrase | Musical unit with expressive contour |
| melodia | Melody | Perceived sequence of pitches |
| armonia | Harmony | Simultaneous pitch organization |
| contrappunto | Counterpoint | Interaction of independent lines |
| cadenza | Cadence | Phrase-ending harmonic or melodic gesture. In Italian, cadenza also means a solo cadenza. |
| modulazione | Modulation | Change of tonal center |
| trasposizione | Transposition | Shift musical material to new pitch level |
| timbro | Timbre | Distinctive sound quality |
| risonanza | Resonance | Sustained acoustic response |
| intonazione | Intonation | Pitch accuracy relative to context |
| equilibrio | Balance | Relative prominence among parts |
| forma | Form | Organization of a composition |
| tema | Theme | Recognizable principal musical idea |
| variazione | Variation | Transformation of an existing idea |
| ritornello | Refrain | Recurring passage; terminology varies by genre |
| messa di voce | Crescendo then diminuendo | Vocal dynamic shaping on one sustained tone |
| ascoltare | Listen | Instruction to attend to sound |
| seguire il direttore | Follow conductor | Ensemble cue and coordination |
| senza accompagnamento | Without accompaniment | Unaccompanied performance |
| con accompagnamento | With accompaniment | Accompanied performance |
Also: French music terms · German music terms · Spanish music terms · every language side by side
Some entries are plain translations used in rehearsal rather than printed markings. Meaning can shift with era and instrument. These are the standard words printed in scores. Usage varies by edition, publisher and period.
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