Tempo terms

1. Grave: solemn. This word is used to describe a very slow and steady tempo. When something is ‘grave’ then we are really in for a treat of heavily paced music.

2. Lento: lazy. ‘Lento’ is a term depicting when something moves but at the speed of a tired person walking around after a big meal. It is faster than ‘grave’ but still pretty slow.

3. Largo: broadly. Broadly can mean many things, and it most certainly can be applied to a larger scope of phrasing. In the case of tempo markings, ‘largo’ is just a bit faster than ‘lento’.

4. Adagio: stately. When something is ‘adagio’, one expects to be at ease. An ‘adagio’ is a pace that is almost close to the beat of a normal step in walking.

5. Andante: measured. When something is ‘andante’ it feels almost as if the BPM aligns with that of walking pace.

6. Moderato: moderately. This term can be easily translated into the English language. ‘Moderato’ literally means moderately, not too fast and not too slow.

7. Allegretto: sprightly. A tempo in between ‘moderato’ and its kin ‘allegro’, ‘allegretto’ is slightly more spirited than your average moderato tempo.

8. Allegro: uplifting. A joyous tempo with a feeling of forward motion is something we think about when talking of ‘allegro’.

9. Vivace: lively. Hold your horses, because things are getting speedy! ‘Vivace’ means fast and is when we really take the tempo to another level.

10. Presto: very fast. Perhaps not the fastest of terms, but certainly up there, ‘presto’ is something we say when we really want to crank up the metronome.