Here’s a list of some of the Italian musical terms you’ll see notated on scores. Even though this list is quite long, there are many terms out there that still need to be added! If you think of any particularly important terms which have been left out, please tell us in the feedback form.
| Musical Term | Abbreviation | English | Other information and examples of usage |
|---|---|---|---|
| a | at; to; by; for; in | eg: a tempo = in time (back to the previous speed). | |
| a capella | unaccompanied | usually in choral music | |
| a piacere | at pleasure | The performer is not bound to follow the given rhythm exactly. | |
| accelerando | (accel.) | gradually getting faster | An increase in the speed of the music. |
| accento | accented; emphasised | ||
| ad libitum | (ad lib.) | at choice; freely | 1) A passage may be performed freely. 2) An instrument in a score may be omitted, particularly if it’s doubling another instrument. |
| adagietto | rather slow (bpm: 70 – 80) | Usually a little faster than adagio, more light hearted | |
| adagio | slowly (bpm: 66 – 76) | Often indicates a speed somewhere between andante and largo | |
| affabile | friendly | ||
| affettuoso | tenderly | ||
| affrettando | hurrying | Af-fret-tando | |
| agitato | agitated; restless | ||
| al; alla | in the manner of | eg: alla marcia = in the style of a march | |
| alla breve | with a minim beat | ||
| allargando | broadening | ||
| allegretto | fairly quick (bpm: 100 – 128) | Faster than Andante and usually slower than Allegro | |
| allegro | fast (bpm: 120 – 156) | ||
| alt | high | “in alt” is used in volcal music to refer to notes in the octave above the treble stave. | |
| amabile | amiable; pleasant | ||
| amore | love | ||
| andante | walking speed (bpm: 72 – 76) | Moderately slow | |
| andantino | like walking speed (bpm – 73 – 83) | This can mean either slightly slower or slightly faster than andante. It is ambiguous. | |
| anima | soul; spirit | eg: con anima = with spirit | |
| animando | becoming more lively | ||
| animato | animated; lively | ||
| appassionato | with passion | ||
| arco | with the bow | An instruction to string players to use the bow. | |
| arioso | like an aria | Play in the style of an aria (singing) | |
| assai | very | eg: allegro assai = very fast | |
| attacca | go straight on | Indicates an immediate move to the next section of music. | |
| ben | well | ||
| bis | twice | Indicates the repetition of a short passage. | |
| bravura | skill; brilliance | ||
| brio | vigour | eg: con brio = with vigour | |
| calando | getting softer; dying away | Usually includes slowing down | |
| cantabile | in a singing style | ||
| cantando | singing | ||
| capriccioso | in a whimsical or fanciful style | ||
| col; colla; colle | with | eg: colla voce = with the voice | |
| come | as; similar to | eg: come prima = as before | |
| comodo | convenient | eg: tempo comodo = at a comfortable speed | |
| con | with | eg: con moto = with movement | |
| crescendo | (cresc.) | gradually getting louder | |
| da capo | (D.C.) | from the beginning | An instruction to repeat the misc from the beginning. |
| dal segno | (D.S.) | from the sign | An instruction to repeat the music from the sign. |
| deciso | with determination | ||
| decrescendo | (decresc.) | gradually getting softer | |
| delicato | delicate | ||
| diminuendo | (dim.) | gradually getting softer | |
| dolce | sweetly | eg: dolcissimo = as sweet as possible | |
| dolente | sad; mournful | ||
| dolore | grief | eg: doloroso = sorrowful | |
| doloroso | sorrowful | ||
| doppio movimento | twice as fast | ||
| e; ed | and | ||
| energico | energetic | ||
| espressivo | (espr.) | expressive | |
| estinto | as soft as possible | ||
| facile | easy | ||
| felice | happy | ||
| fermata | pause | ||
| feroce | fierce | ||
| fine | the end | Often used in conjunction with “da capo” or “dal segno” to indicate where to end the piece after repeating. eg: al fine = to the end | |
| flessibile | flexible | ||
| forte | (f) | loud; strong | |
| fortepiano | (fp) | loud then immediately soft | This is also the term for the keyboard instrument piano. It was named such because it’s predecessor, the harpsichord, had a narrow dynamic range. |
| fortissimo | (ff) | very loud | -issi- means very |
| forza | force | eg: forzando (fz) = strongly accented | |
| fretta | haste | ||
| fuoco | fire | ||
| furioso | furious | ||
| giocoso | playful; humorous | ||
| giojoso | joyful; merry | ||
| giusto | proper; exact | ||
| grandioso | grandly | ||
| grave | very slow; solemn (bpm: 20 – 40) | ||
| grazioso | graceful | ||
| impetuoso | impetuous, violent, or impulsive | ||
| incalzando | getting quicker | Similar to accelerando. | |
| inquieto | restless | ||
| in relievo | prominent | A direction to make the melody stand out. | |
| lacrimoso | sad | Like a lament. | |
| largamente | broadly | ||
| larghetto | Rather slow (bpm: 60 – 66 bpm) | Slightly faster than largo. | |
| largo | rather slow; stately (bpm: 40 – 60) | Could be defined as broadly | |
| legato | smoothly | Indicates no break between notes. | |
| leggiero | light; nimble | ||
| lento | slow (bpm: 40 – 60) | ||
| liberamente | freely | ||
| l’istesso | the same | eg: l’istesso tempo = at the same speed | |
| loco | at the normal pitch | Used to cancel an 8va direction. Also used to confirm that 8va is not intended. | |
| lugubre | mournful | ||
| lunga | long | eg: lunga pausa = long pause | |
| lusigando | coaxing | ||
| ma | but | eg: allegro ma non troppo = quick but not too quick | |
| maestoso | majestic | ||
| mancando | fading away | ||
| marcato | (marc.) | emphatic; accented | |
| marziale | in a military style | ||
| meno | less | eg: meno forte = less loud | |
| mesto | sad | ||
| mezzo | (m) | moderately | |
| mezzoforte | (mf) | moderately loud | |
| mezzopiano | (mp) | moderately soft | |
| misterioso | mysterious | ||
| misura | measure | eg: alla misura = in strict time; senza misura = in free time | |
| moderato | moderate speed | eg: allegro moderato = moderately fast. | |
| molto | very; much | eg: allegro molto = very fast | |
| morendo | dying away | ||
| mosso | movement | ||
| moto | movement | ||
| niente | nothing | ||
| nobilmente | nobly | ||
| non | not | ||
| nuovo | new | e.g. di nuovo = again | |
| obbligato | obligatory | Indicates that an instrument has a special role and is essential. | |
| ossia | or; alternatively | Often used to indicate a simpler version of a difficult passage. | |
| ostinato | persistent | Generally refers to a persistently repeated rhythmic or melodic figure, similar to a riff in pop music. | |
| parlando | speaking | A direction for a singer to sing in a conversational style, often in recitatives | |
| patetico | with deep feeling | ||
| pausa | pause | ||
| per | by; for; to | ||
| perdendosi | dying away | ||
| pesante | heavy | ||
| piacevole | pleasant | ||
| piangevole | plaintive | ||
| pianissimo | (pp) | very soft | |
| piano | (p) | soft | |
| più | more | e.g. più forte = louder | |
| pizzicato | plucked | An instruction to string players to pluck the strings, rather than bow them. | |
| placido | calm; peaceful | Placido | |
| pochettino | (poch.) | rather little | |
| poco | a little | e.g. poco a poco = little by little | |
| possible | possible | e.g. presto possible = as fast as possible | |
| precipitando | rushing; headlong | ||
| presto | very fast | ||
| prima | first | (Prima; Primo) e.g. prima volta = first time; tempo primo = revert to the speed at the beginning of the piece of music | |
| quasi | as if; resembling | e.g. quasi recitativo = like a recitative | |
| rallentando | (rall.) | gradually getting slower | |
| rigoroso | strict | ||
| rinforzando | (rf; rfz) | reinforcing | |
| risoluto | bold; strong | ||
| ritardando | (rit.) | gradually getting slower | |
| ritenuto | (rit.) | held back | |
| ritmico | rhythmically | ||
| rubato | with some freedom of time | ||
| scherzando | playful; joking | Also scherzoso. | |
| scherzo | joke; jest | A movement in a piece, generally light and humerous in nature. | |
| seconda | second | (Seconda; secondo) | |
| semplice | simple; plain | ||
| sempre | always | e.g. sempre staccato = always detached | |
| senza | without | e.g. senza misura = freely (not in time) | |
| segue | go straight on | ||
| sforzando | (sf; sfz) | forced; accented | |
| simile | (sim.) | in the same way | |
| slargando | getting slower | ||
| slancio | enthusiasm | ||
| smorzando | (smorz.) | dying away | Both tone and speed |
| soave | gentle; smooth | ||
| solenne | solemn; grave | ||
| sonoro | resonant; with rich tone | ||
| sopra | above | a soprano is a high-pitched voice or instrument, one which you can hear above the orchestra | |
| sospirando | sighing | ||
| sostenuto | sustained | ||
| sotto | below | eg: sotto voce = in an undertone | |
| spirito | spirited | Also known as spiritoso. | |
| staccato | detached | Opposite of legato. | |
| strepitoso | noisy; boisterous | ||
| stretto | quickening the speed | Also means overlapping entries of a fugue subject. | |
| stringendo | gradually getting faster | ||
| subito | suddenly | ||
| tacet | silent | A direction that a particular part has nothing to play in a section of music. | |
| tanto | so much | ||
| tempo | speed | eg: a tempo = return to the previous speed, after a slowing down or speeding up. | |
| teneramente | tenderly | ||
| tenuto | held | ||
| tosto | swift; rapid | ||
| tranquillo | calm | ||
| trionfale | triumphant | ||
| triste | sad; sorrowful | ||
| troppo | too much | eg: allegro ma non troppo = fast, but not too fast. | |
| tutti | all; everyone | ||
| veloce | swift | ||
| vigoroso | vigorous; strong | ||
| vivace | lively (bpm = 156 – 176) | Vivo also means lively. | |
| voce | voice | ||
| volante | flying; fast | ||
| volta | time | e.g. prima volta = first time | |
| volti subito | (V.S.) | turn the page at once |
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References:
http://www.musictheory.org.uk/res-musical-terms/italian-musical-terms.php
Tempo Markings | Quick Guide To Common Tempos In Music (theonlinemetronome.com)
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