Italian Terms
accent
stress the note
adagio
very slowly
allegretto
fairly fast
allegro
quick and lively
andante
rather slow, walking pace
andantino
little faster than andante
a tempo
return to original tempo
cantabile
in a single style
da capo
repeat from the beginning
dal segno
repeat from the sign
dolce
sweetly
fermata
hold the note longer than its written value
fine
the end of the music
grazioso
gracefully
larghetto
not as slow as largo
largo
slow and broad
legato
smoothly
lento
slow
maestoso
majestically
marcato
well marked, with a definite emphasis
tenuto
to hold, note is played for its full value
moderato
at a moderate pace
poco
little
presto
very fast
prestissimo
as fast as possible
rallentando
gradually getting slower
ritardando
gradually getting slower
repeat sign
repeat the music within the double bars
slur
ties two notes of different ptiches, play notes smoothly, connected
stacatto
play notes sharply, detached
colla voce
follow the solo voice, singer has freedom of phrasing
tempo prinmo
play the original speed
caesura
to pause, a break in phrase or tempo