Now updated for CSW19. New words, if any, and new inflections of existing words, are shown in red.
accelerando | (a passage) to be played increasingly quickly > ACCELERANDOS. |
adagio | (a passage) to be played slowly > ADAGIOS. |
affettuoso | with feeling. |
agitato | in an agitated manner. |
allargando | slowing. |
allegretto | (a passage) quicker than ANDANTE, but not so quick as ALLEGRO > ALLEGRETTOS. |
allegro | (a passage) in a lively, cheerful manner > ALLEGROS. |
altaltissimo | (a passage) to be played very very high > ALTALTISSIMOS. |
altissimo | v(a passage) to be played very high. |
ancora | encore. |
andante | (a passage) to be played moderately slowly (a bit quicker than ADAGIO) > ANDANTES. |
andantino | (a passage) rather quicker than ANDANTE > ANDANTINOS. |
animato | in a lively manner; (noun) a passage to be played in a lively manner > ANIMATOS or ANIMATI. |
arco | with the bow (marking the end of a PIZZICATO passage, during which the strings have been plucked with the fingers) > ARCOS or ARCHI. |
arioso | in the melodious manner of an aria; (noun) an aria > ARIOSOS or ARIOSI. |
assai | very. |
assez | fairly. |
bis | twice. |
brio | liveliness, enthusiastic vigour, as in con brio. |
calando | slowing with gradually lowering volume. |
calo | (abbrev. of) CALANDO, slowing with gradually lowering volume. |
cantabile | (a passage) in a melodious, flowing style; in a singing style, as opposed to RECITATIVO, or PARLANDO > CANTABILES. |
capriccioso | in a free and impulsive style. |
cito | quickly. |
commodo comodo | with ease, relaxed. |
crescendo | (a passage) with a gradual increase in loudness; (verb) to come to a crescendo > CRESCENDI or CRESCENDOS. |
decrescendo | = DIMINUENDO, (a passage) in a gradually diminishing manner; with abatement of tone > DECRESCENDOS (and not DECRESCENDI*). |
diminuendo | (a passage) in a gradually diminishing manner; with abatement of tone > DIMINUENDOS. |
dolcemente | softly; sweetly; with soft, smooth, and delicate execution. |
dolente | to be performed in a sorrowful manner. |
doloroso | plaintive, pathetic. |
downbow | a downward stroke in playing a bowed instrument. |
espressivo | to be performed in an expressive manner. |
forte | loudly; (noun) one's strong point > FORTES. |
fortepiano | loud with immediate relapse into softness; (noun) the 18c name for an early type of piano; a fortepiano note > FORTEPIANOS. |
fortissimo | (a passage) to be played very loudly > FORTISSIMI or FORTISSIMOS. |
fortississimo | as loudly as possible. |
forzando forzato sforzando sforzato | (a passage) to be played with special emphasis or sudden loudness > FORZANDOS or FORZANDI, FORZATOS or FORZATI, SFORZANDOS or SFORZANDI, SFORZATOS or SFORZATI. |
furioso | in a furious manner; (noun) a furious person > FURIOSOS. |
giocoso | played in a lively or humorous manner. |
giusto | in just, correct, or suitable time. |
glissando | (a passage) to be played with a gliding effect > GLISSANDOS or GLISSANDI. |
grandioso | in a broad or noble style. |
grazioso | gracefully; smoothly; elegantly. |
lacrimoso lagrimoso | plaintive. |
largando | becoming gradually slower. |
larghetto | (a passage) to be played rather slowly > LARGHETTOS. |
largo | (a passage) to be played in a slow broad manner > LARGOS. |
legatissimo | as smoothly as possible. |
legato | (a passage) to be played in a smooth, even style > LEGATOS. |
leggiero | light or graceful; in a light, delicate, and brisk style. |
lentamente | slowly; in slow time. |
lentando | slackening; retarding. |
lentissimo | very slow. |
lento | slow; in slow time; (noun) a slow movement > LENTI or LENTOS. |
maestoso | majestic or majestically > MAESTOSOS. |
mancando | fading away. |
marcatissimo | in a very marked emphatic manner. |
marcato | in a marked emphatic manner. |
martellato | played with a hammering touch, or with short quick detached movements of the bow > MARTELLATOS. |
meno | less. |
mesto | sad. |
mezzo | moderately; (noun) a mezzo-soprano > MEZZOS. |
moderato | a musical direction indicating a moderate degree of quickness > MODERATOS. |
molto | much; very; as, molto adagio, very slow. |
morendo | dying: relating to a gradual DECRESCENDO at the end of a strain or cadenceMORENDOS. |
mosso | with motion or animation. |
niente | softly fading away. |
ossia | a direction giving a performer the choice of performing a different passageOSSIAS. |
ottava | an octave higher than indicated > OTTAVAS. |
parlando parlante | sung in a style suggestive of speech (e.g. Gilbert and Sullivan). |
perdendo perdendosi | slowing and softening at the same time. |
pesante | heavy, weighty. |
piacevole | pleasant, playful. |
piano | softly; (noun) a keyboard instrument > PIANOS. |
pianissimo | (a passage) to be executed very softly > PIANISSIMOS. |
pianississimo | as softly as possible. |
piu | more. |
pizzicato | a direction to violinists to pluck the string with the finger, instead of using the bow > PIZZICATI or PIZZICATOS. |
poco | little. |
pomposo | in a pompous manner. |
prestissimo | (a passage) to be played as quickly as possible > PRESTISSIMOS. |
presto | (a passage) in rapid tempo > PRESTOS. |
rallentando | (a passage) with a gradually slackening tempo > RALLENTANDI or RALLENTANDOS. |
religioso | in a devotional manner > RELIGIOSOS. |
rinforzando | with a sudden stress or crescendo. |
risoluto | with emphasis, boldly. |
ritard | a musical passage with a gradual slackening of tempo > RITARDS. |
ritardando | (a musical passage) with a gradual slackening of tempo > RITARDANDOS or RITARDANDI. |
ritenuto | (a musical passage) with a holding back of the normal tempo, that is then resumed > RITENUTOS. |
rubato | (a musical passage) in modified or distorted rhythm > RUBATOS or RUBATI. |
saltando saltato | with leaping bow> SALTANDOS, SALTATOS. |
scherzando | (a musical passage) in a playful or sportive manner > SCHERZANDOS. |
sciolto | in a free manner. |
scordato | put out of tune. |
scorrendo | in a gliding manner. |
segno | a notational sign marking the beginning or the end of a repeat > SEGNI or SEGNOS. [L. signum]. |
selah | a musical instruction meaning a pause, to reflect upon that which came before or which follows, for a meditational attitude > SELAHS. |
semplice | simply, plainly. |
sempre | always; throughout; as, sempre piano, always soft. |
senza | without; as, senza stromenti, without instruments. |
sforzando | see FORZANDO. |
sforzato | see FORZANDO. |
smorzando smorzato | with a gradual fading away, growing slower and softer. |
solito | in the usual manner. |
sopra | above. |
sorda | fem. of SORDO, muted, damped. |
sordamente | gently, softly. |
sordo | muted, damped. |
sostenuto | (a passage) to be played in a sustained or drawn out manner > SOSTENUTOS. |
spiccato | (a passage) to be played with staccato bowing > SPICCATOS. |
spiritoso | spirited; -- a direction to perform a passage in an animated, lively manner. |
staccatissimo | in a very STACCATO manner. |
staccato | (a passage) to be played with short, clear-cut notes > STACCATOS or STACCATI. |
strepitoso | noisy, boisterous. |
stringendo | urging or hastening the time, as to a climax. |
subito | at once; immediately. |
suivez | follow (the solo part, as a direction to accompanists). |
tacet | it is silent; -- a direction for a vocal or instrumental part to be silent during a whole movement. No —S. |
tanto | so much, too much. |
tardo | slowly. |
tremolando | (a passage) to be played with a tremulous effect > TREMOLANDI or TREMOLANDOS. |
tremolant | a vibrating, quavering musical effect > TREMOLANTS. |
tremolo | a vibrating, quavering musical effect > TREMOLOS. |
troppo | too much. |
tutti | a direction for all the singers or players to perform together > TUTTIS. |
uptempo | a piece in a fast tempo > UPTEMPOS. |
veloce | rapidly. |
vibrato | (a passage) to be played with a throbbing effect > VIBRATOS. |
vibratoless | without VIBRATO. |
vigoroso | with energy and force. |
vite | quickly. |
vivace | (a passage to be played) in a lively manner > VIVACES. |
vivacissimo | in a very lively manner. |
vivamente | in a lively manner. |
vivo | lively. |
volti | a direction to musicians to turn the page > VOLTIS. |
zeloso | with fervour. |