What Does Allegro Mean in Music?
Allegro is an Italian tempo marking that indicates a quick and lively pace. It is faster than moderato and allegretto, and slower than vivace and presto.
What allegro indicates to a performer
The word allegro means cheerful or bright in Italian. As a tempo marking it indicates both a quick beat and a lively character.
Allegro is printed in bold or italic type above the first measure of a piece or a section. It applies until another tempo word or a metronome mark replaces it.
Many first movements of sonatas and symphonies are marked allegro. A slow introduction marked adagio or largo may come before it.
The metronome range of allegro
Tempo charts commonly place allegro at about 120 to 156 beats per minute. Other charts extend the upper limit toward 168. The figures differ from source to source.
The word alone does not set an exact number. The meter, the shortest note values and the style of the piece all affect the speed. An allegro in cut time, which is 2/2, is felt as two half-note beats in each measure.
When a composer adds a metronome mark, such as a quarter note equal to 132, the number sets the speed. The word then describes the character of the music.
Qualifiers that change the meaning of allegro
Exam papers often add a second word to allegro. Allegro moderato means moderately quick. Allegro ma non troppo means quick but not too quick, and allegro non troppo has the same meaning.
Other qualifiers make the tempo faster or add character. Allegro assai and allegro molto both mean extremely quick. Each indicates more speed than plain allegro. Allegro vivace means quick and lively, and allegro con brio means quick with vigor.
Allegretto is a separate marking. The ending -etto means little, so allegretto means fairly quick. It is slower than allegro.
Allegro beside the neighboring tempo words
From slow to fast, the common markings are andante, moderato, allegretto, allegro, vivace and presto. Allegro sits in the middle of the fast group.
Allegro and presto are two different instructions. Presto indicates a clearly faster tempo, and the word carries no sense of cheerfulness. Allegro carries a sense of brightness as well as speed.
How it looks in a score
- Looks like
- Written allegro
- Asks for
- Indicates a lively or fast tempo.
How it looks
In exams and courses
ABRSM Music Theory lists allegro, allegretto and moderato at Grade 1. It adds molto, non troppo, presto and vivace at Grade 2 and assai at Grade 4. Trinity Theory lists allegro at Grade 1, allegretto at Grade 2 and ma non troppo at Grade 4. The AP Music Theory course places allegro among the faster tempo terms.
Practice tests on this site with questions on this term:
Practice it
- The Music Stem Calculator. Enter a tempo in beats per minute and see how long each beat and each eighth note lasts at an allegro pace.
- Tempo Ladder. Start a passage at sixty beats per minute. Raise it in small steps toward its allegro tempo. Stop when you can no longer play it evenly.
- Trinity Theory Grade 2. Answer questions on allegretto, molto and the other tempo words of the Grade 2 list.
- Trinity Theory Grade 3. Translate combined markings such as allegro non troppo in the format of the Grade 3 paper.
Flashcard
What is allegro?
Allegro is an Italian tempo marking that indicates a quick and lively pace. It is faster than moderato and allegretto, and slower than vivace and presto.
Related terms
- Tempo
- The speed at which musical beats recur.
- Andante
- A moderately moving tempo, traditionally suggesting a walking pace.
- Presto
- A tempo marking faster than allegro, typically suggesting urgency and brilliance.
- Metronome mark
- A numerical tempo instruction specifying beats per minute for a chosen note value.
- Tempo giusto
- An instruction to maintain a suitable, regular tempo without excessive flexibility.
- A tempo
- A direction to return to the previously established speed after a change.