PERFORMANCE DIRECTIONS

COMMON TERMS AND SIGNS

(MOSTLY) ITALIAN PERFORMANCE DIRECTIONS

 (LEVEL 1 NCEA)

ADJECTIVES

AD LIBITUM (AD LIB) – FREELY (usually an instruction to improvise)

AGITATO – AGITATED

AMOROSO – LOVING

ANIMANDO – BECOMING LIVELY

ANIMATO – LIVELY

BRIO – VIGOUR

CANTABILE IN A SINGING STYLE

COMODO – CONVENIENT, COMFORTABLE

DECISO – WITH DETERMINATION

DELICATO – DELICATELY

DOLCE SWEETLY

ENERGICO – WITH ENERGY

ESPRESSIVO  EXPRESSIVELY 


GIOCOSO PLAYFULLY

GRAZIOSO  GRACEFULLY

LARGAMENTE BROADLY

LEGGIERO LIGHTLY 

MAESTOSO MAJESTICALLY

MARZIALE MARCH-LIKE

MESTO – SAD

MOSSO, MOTO MOVEMENT

PESANTE – HEAVILY

POCO LITTLE

POCO A POCO GRADUALLY


RISOLUTO – BOLD, STRONG RESOLUTELY

RITMICO - RHYTHMICALLY

RUBATO – WITH SOME FREEDOM OF TIME

SCHERZANDO – PLAYFUL, JOKING

SEMPLICE – SIMPLE, PLAIN

SEMPRE – ALWAYS

STRINGENDO – GRADUALLY GETTING FASTER

SUBITO – SUDDENLY

TANTO – SO MUCH

TRISTE – SADLY

TROPPO – TOO MUCH


SIMILE  SIMILARLY

SOSTENUTO  SUSTAINED

TENUTO – HELD

TRANQUILLO CALMLY

VIVO - LIVELY


QUALIFIERS

AL, ALLA LIKE

ASSAI VERY

CON, COL WITH

E AND

MA BUT

MENO LESS

PIU  MORE

SENZA WITHOUT


PRIMA, PRIMO – FIRST

SECONDA – SECOND

VOLTA – TIME (EG PRIMA VOLTA, FIRST TIME)


TUTTI - EVERYBODY PLAY TOGETHER

TACET - BE SILENT (DON'T PLAY THE WRITTEN PART)

DIVISI (Div) - SPLIT INTO SEPARATE PARTS

A2 (a deu) - PLAY A SINGLE LINE TOGETHER (the opposite of DIVISI) 


REPEATS, 1st TIME BARS and CODAS

WHOLE SECTION REPEATS

FIRST AND SECOND TIME BARS

D.C. and D.S. al FINE

D.C. and D.S. al CODA

Repeat Sign

Most styles of music call for their individual sections to be repeated at times. In fact, this kind of repetition is often important to the structure of a musical composition, Two dots before a double bar form a repeat sign,

If a repeat sign occurs at the end of the piece, it indicates that you should repeat the entire piece once from the beginning. Play "Hot Cross Buns" twice through in tempo.


If a repeat sign occurs in the middle of a piece, go back to the beginning and repeat the section before going on.

Da Capo

D.C. is an abbreviation of the Italian phrase Da Capo, meaning "from the head.' This marking means the same thing as a single repeat sign--repeat the piece from its beginning.


Inverted Repeat Sign

If a reverse repeat sign occurs earlier in the piece, you should only repeat from that point onward. Here the inverted repeat sign means that you should skip the first measure when you repeat the piece.


Alternate Endings

A bracket and numeral is used to mark alternate endings for a section. Here you should skip the first ending on the repeat and go on to the second ending.


D.$. al Coda

D.S. al Coda means to repeat from the dal segno sign. Once you reach the coda sign, skip to the next coda sign, and play the coda section. D.C. al Coda and D.S. al Coda are also written D. C. al $ and D. S. al $.


D.C. al Coda

D.C. al Coda tells you to repeat the piece until you reach the coda sign ($) then skip to the next coda sign, and play the coda, a short ending section (literally "tail").


 

D.S. al Fine

D.S. al Fine means to go back to the dal segno sign and repeat until the point marked Fine.


 

D.C. al Fine

Fine (pronounced "feenay') is the Italian word for "end." D.C. al Fine tells you to go back to the beginning of the piece and repeat until you come to the marking Fine.