The word "pace", which is so often found in our daily lives, has Latin roots, as it comes from tempos, which means "time." We perform all actions for a certain time period, and in some cases its duration does not matter. However, in music, the listener's perception of a work directly depends on the speed of its performance. The melody can be unhurried, moderate or, conversely, very fast.
From this article we learn what it is such a slow pace in music, for what works it is characteristic and what impact it has on the viewer.
Where the pace is
As a rule, the standard tempo, which is written in notes in Italian, is typical only for classical music and folk dances. Of course, they can be applied to any other work, for example, to a pop song or to the melodies of Buddhist monks. In each of these cases, a slow tempo in the music will set the listener to calm or light sadness if the melody is plaintive.
Also, many classical works that are performed in a leisurely form are distinguished by importance and solemnity.
Slow works
The slow pace in classical music is found in the work of almost every composer. A striking example is the first part of the 14th (Lunar) sonata of L. Beethoven, “Andante” A. Khachaturian, “Sarabanda with Variations” by Handel. All these works are distinguished by a sad, dreamy and slightly gloomy mood. Here, the slow pace in music is combined with minor harmonies, which gives rise to sadness. If the work is built on a major scale, then it takes on a solemn character.
Pace writing features
The musicians are used to expressing all the pace in Italian. Therefore, if you start making music, you will soon learn these simple words and remember their meanings. The slowest pace in music is grave, which means "important." It is followed by a more protracted largo, which translates as "wide", "stretched." A popular slow-paced music pace is adagio. Thanks to him, many works received their names, for example, “Adagio” by Albinoni or the work of the same name by I. S. Bach.
It is followed by the calmest lento. The next musical rhythm is still related to slow, but differs in mobility. We are talking about andante, which translates as "at the pace of step." You need to play evenly, without rushing, but without stretching the notes. But at the pace andantino should be performed with a little haste, but still restrained.
Slow to moderate
After andantino there is already a moderate slow pace in music called moderato. There are many variations of this musical speed of performance, which add to moderation a shade of importance or haste, calm or confusion.
It should be noted that in classic large-scale pieces, the pace often changes. If you take the standard sonata, then its beginning - exposure - you need to play brightly, restrainedly. The middle part - development - is of a technical nature, and the last - reprise - should be played with feeling, a little long.