cresc decrescendo ffff tonguing fortissimo pianissimo 30052 pianississimo sforzando diminuendo fff hairpins sibelius loudness subito molto pianoforte fortepiano étude donington ligeti poco rachmaninoff niente quantz eulenburg spreadbury saiten mezzo martelé
what does an f mean in sheet music
Dynamics ( music ) - wikipedia Dynamics ( music ) Jump to : navigation , search `` Fortissimo '' redirects here . For other uses , see Fortissimo ( disambiguation ) . Same motif repeated at various quiet and loud dynamics Play ( help info ) In music , the dynamics of a piece is the variation in loudness between notes or phrases . Dynamics are indicated by specific musical notation , often in some detail . However , dynamics markings still require interpretation by the performer depending on the musical context : for instance a piano ( quiet ) marking in one part of a piece might have quite different objective loudness in another piece , or even a different section of the same piece . The execution of dynamics also extends beyond loudness to include changes in timbre and sometimes tempo rubato . Contents ( hide ) 1 Purpose and interpretation 2 Dynamic markings 2.1 Changes 2.2 Extreme dynamic markings 3 History 4 Relation to audio dynamics 5 See also 6 Notes 7 References Purpose and interpretation ( edit ) Dynamics are one of the expressive elements of music . Used effectively , dynamics help musicians sustain variety and interest in a musical performance , and communicate a particular emotional state or feeling . Dynamic markings are always relative . p never indicates a precise level of loudness , it merely indicates that music in a passage so marked should be considerably quieter than f . There are many factors affecting the interpretation of a dynamic marking . For instance , the middle of a musical phrase will normally be played louder than the beginning or ending , to ensure the phrase is properly shaped , even where a passage is marked p throughout . Similarly , in multi-part music , some voices will naturally be played louder than others , for instance to emphasis the melody and the bass line , even if a whole passage is marked at one dynamic level . Some instruments are naturally louder than others - for instance , a tuba playing piano will likely be louder than a guitar playing fortissimo , while a high - pitched instrument piccolo playing in its upper register can usually sound loud even where its actual decibel level is lower than that of other instruments . Further , a dynamic marking does not necessarily only affect loudness of the music . A forte passage is not usually `` the same as a piano passage but louder '' . Rather , a musician will often use a different approach to other aspects of expression like timbre or articulation to further illustrate the differences . Sometimes this might also extend to tempo . It 's important for a performer to be able to control dynamics and tempo independently , and thus novice musicians are often instructed `` do n't speed up just because it 's getting louder ! '' . However , in some circumstances , a dynamic marking might also indicate a change of tempo . In some music notation programs , there are default MIDI key velocity values associated with these indications , but more sophisticated programs allow users to change these as needed . Apple 's Logic Pro 9 ( 2009 - 2013 ) and Avid 's Sibelius 5 ( 2007 - 2009 ) use the following values : Sibelius 5 defines the following values , though these may be adjusted in Sibelius , within the range 0 - 127 : Letters ppp pp p mp mf f ff fff Logic Pro 9 dynamics 16 32 48 64 80 96 112 127 Sibelius 5 dynamics 20 39 61 71 84 98 113 127 Sibelius 5 attacks 15 30 50 60 75 90 105 119 Dynamic markings ( edit ) See also : Glossary of musical terminology Scale of dynamic markings Name Letters Level fortississimo fff very very loud fortissimo ff louder forte f loud mezzo - forte mf average mezzo - piano mp piano p soft pianissimo pp softer pianississimo ppp very very soft The two basic dynamic indications in music are : p or piano , meaning `` soft '' . for forte , meaning `` loud '' . More subtle degrees of loudness or softness are indicated by : mp , standing for mezzo - piano , meaning `` half soft '' . mf , standing for mezzo - forte , meaning `` half loud '' . più p , standing for più piano and meaning `` softer '' . più f , standing for più forte and meaning `` louder '' . Use of up to three consecutive fs or ps is also common : pp , standing for pianissimo and meaning `` very soft '' . ff , standing for fortissimo and meaning `` very loud '' . ppp , standing for pianississimo and meaning `` very very soft '' ( or alternatively pianissimo possibile , `` as soft as possible '' ) . fff , standing for fortississimo and meaning `` very very loud '' . Changes ( edit ) `` Crescendo '' redirects here . For other uses , see Crescendo ( disambiguation ) . Note Velocity is a MIDI measurement of the speed that the key travels from its rest position to completely depressed , with 127 , the largest value in a 7 - bit number , being instantaneous , and meaning as strong as possible . Play a C major chord at each dynamic from fff to ppp ( help info ) Three Italian words are used to show gradual changes in volume : crescendo ( abbreviated cresc . ) translates as `` increasing '' ( literally `` growing '' ) . decrescendo ( abbreviated to decresc . ) translates as `` decreasing '' . diminuendo ( abbreviated dim . ) translates as `` diminishing '' . Signs sometimes referred to as `` hairpins '' are also used to stand for these words ( See image ) . If the angle lines open up ( ) , then the indication is to get louder ; if they close gradually ( ) , the indication is to get softer . The following notation indicates music starting moderately strong , then becoming gradually stronger and then gradually quieter : Hairpins are usually written below the staff ( or between the two staves in a grand staff ) , but are sometimes found above , especially in music for singers or in music with multiple melody lines being played by a single performer . They tend to be used for dynamic changes over a relatively short space of time ( at most a few bars ) , while cresc. , decresc. and dim . are generally used for changes over a longer period . Word directions can be extended with dashes to indicate over what time the event should occur , which may be as long as multiple pages . The word morendo ( `` dying '' ) is also sometimes used for a gradual reduction in dynamics ( and tempo ) . For greater changes in dynamics , cresc . molto and dim . molto are often used , where the molto means `` much '' . Similarly , for more gradual changes poco cresc. and poco dim . are used , where `` poco '' translates as a little , or alternatively with poco a poco meaning `` little by little . Sudden changes in dynamics may be notated by adding the word subito ( meaning `` suddenly '' ) as a prefix or suffix to the new dynamic notation . Subito piano ( abbreviated sub . p ) ( `` suddenly soft '' ) indicates that the dynamics quickly , almost abruptly , lower the volume to approximately the p range . It is often purposefully used to subvert the listeners expectation and will signify an intimacy expression . Although it uses the piano p dynamic symbol , the performer has slight freedom in their interpretation , causing it to vary based on the preceding loudness or character of the piece . Accented notes can be notated sforzando , sforzato , forzando or forzato ( abbreviated sfz , sf , or fz ) ( `` forcing '' or `` forced '' ) , or using the sign > , placed above or below the head of the note . Sforzando ( or sforzato , forzando , forzato ) indicates a forceful accent and is abbreviated as sf , sfz or fz . There is often confusion surrounding these markings and whether or not there is any difference in the degree of accent . However , all of these indicate the same expression , depending on the dynamic level , and the extent of the sforzando is determined purely by the performer . The fortepiano notation fp indicates a forte followed immediately by piano . By contrast , pf is an abbreviation for poco forte , literally `` a little loud '' but ( according to Brahms ) meaning with the character of forte , but the sound of piano , though rarely used because of possible confusion with pianoforte ) . Extreme dynamic markings ( edit ) Two measures of Sergei Rachmaninoff 's Prelude in C ♯ showing dynamic markings sffff . The top two staves are both played by the right hand , the bottom two by the left . While the typical range of dynamic markings is from ppp to fff , some pieces use additional markings of further emphasis . Extreme dynamic markings imply an extreme range of loudness , or , alternatively , imply an extremely subtle distinction between very small differences of loudness within a normal range . This kind of usage is most common in orchestral works from the late 19th - century onwards . Generally , these markings are supported by the orchestration of the work , with heavy forte markings brought to life by having many loud instruments like brass and percussion playing at once . An early example of a decrescendo across 72 bars , from f to pppppp , is found in the fifth piece ( `` The Indian '' ) of Walter William Stockhoff 's In the Mountains : 7 Impressions for Pianoforte , op . 2 ( 1914 ) . For instance , in Holst 's The Planets , ffff occurs twice in `` Mars '' and once in `` Uranus '' , often punctuated by organ . Tchaikovsky marks a bassoon solo pppppp ( 6 ps ) in his Pathétique Symphony and uses ffff in passages of his 1812 Overture and his Fifth Symphony . The baritone passage `` Era la notte '' from Verdi 's opera Otello uses pppp , though the same spot is marked ppp in the full score . Steane ( 1971 ) suggest that such markings are in reality a strong reminder to less - than - subtle singers to at least sing softly rather than an instruction to the singer actually to attempt a pppp . Igor Stravinsky used ffff at the end of the finale of the 1919 Firebird Suite . Sergei Rachmaninoff uses sffff in his Prelude in C ♯ , Op. 3 No. 2 . Gustav Mahler , in the third movement of his Seventh Symphony , gives the celli and basses a marking of fffff ( 5 fs ) , along with a footnote directing ' pluck so hard that the strings hit the wood ' . On the other extreme , Carl Nielsen , in the second movement of his Fifth Symphony , marked a passage for woodwinds a diminuendo to ppppp ( 5 ps ) . György Ligeti uses extreme dynamics in his Piano Études : Étude No. 9 ( Vertige ) ends with a diminuendo to pppppppp ( 8 ps ) , while Étude No. 13 ( L'Escalier du Diable ) contains a passage marked ffffff ( 6 fs ) that progresses to a ffffffff ( 8 fs ) . History ( edit ) On Music , one of the Moralia attributed to the philosopher Plutarch in the first century AD , suggests that ancient Greek musical performance included dynamic transitions -- though dynamics receive far less attention in the text than does rhythm or harmony . The Renaissance composer Giovanni Gabrieli was one of the first to indicate dynamics in music notation , but dynamics were used sparingly by composers until the late 18th century . Bach used some dynamic terms , including forte , piano , più piano , and pianissimo ( although written out as full words ) , and in some cases it may be that ppp was considered to mean pianissimo in this period . The fact that the harpsichord could play only `` terraced '' dynamics ( either loud or soft , but not in between ) , and the fact that composers of the period did not mark gradations of dynamics in their scores , has led to the `` somewhat misleading suggestion that baroque dynamics are ' terraced dynamics ' , '' writes Robert Donington . In fact , baroque musicians constantly varied dynamics . `` Light and shade must be constantly introduced ... by the incessant interchange of loud and soft , '' wrote Johann Joachim Quantz in 1752 . In addition to this , the harpsichord in fact becomes louder or softer depending on the thickness of the musical texture ( four notes are louder than two ) . This allowed composers such as Bach to build dynamics directly into their compositions , without the need for notation . In the Romantic period , composers greatly expanded the vocabulary for describing dynamic changes in their scores . Where Haydn and Mozart specified six levels ( pp to ff ) , Beethoven used also ppp and fff ( the latter less frequently ) , and Brahms used a range of terms to describe the dynamics he wanted . In the slow movement of the trio for violin , horn and piano ( Opus 40 ) , he uses the expressions ppp , molto piano , and quasi niente to express different qualities of quiet . Many Romantic and later composers added più p and più f , making for a total of ten levels between ppp and fff . Relation to audio dynamics ( edit ) The introduction of modern recording techniques has provided alternative ways to control the dynamics of music . Dynamic range compression is used to control the dynamic range of a recording , or a single instrument . This can affect loudness variations , both at the micro - and macro scale . In many contexts , the meaning of the term dynamics is therefore not immediately clear . To distinguish between the different aspects of dynamics , the term performed dynamics can be used to refer to the aspects of music dynamics that is controlled exclusively by the performer . See also ( edit ) Look up fortissimo or decrescendo in Wiktionary , the free dictionary . Accent ( music ) Glossary of musical terminology Notes ( edit ) Jump up ^ For instance , in Schubert 's string quartet Death and the Maiden , the dimenuendo marking is followed by a tempo , indicating that the dimenuendo is a reduction in speed as well as in loudness . In the same work Schubert uses decrescendo to indicate a reduction in loudness with no change in speed . Jump up ^ So stark anreißen , daß die Saiten an das Holz anschlagen . References ( edit ) Jump up ^ Thiemel , Matthias . `` Dynamics '' . Grove Music Online ( subscriber only access ) . Oxford University Press . Retrieved 7 July 2017 . Jump up ^ `` Apple Logic Pro 9 User Manual for MIDI Step Input Recording '' . Retrieved 2013 - 07 - 29 . Jump up ^ Spreadbury , Daniel ; Eastwood , Michael ; Finn , Ben ; and Finn , Jonathan ( March 2008 ) . Sibelius 5 Reference . Edition 5.2 . Sibeilus Software . Jump up ^ Read , Gardner ( 1969 / 1979 ) . Music Notation : A Manual of Modern Practice , p. 250 . 2nd edition . Crescendo Publishing , part of Taplinger Publishing . ISBN 0 - 8008 - 5453 - 5 . ^ Jump up to : Randel , Don Michael ( 2003 ) . The Harvard Dictionary of Music ( 4th ed . ) . Cambridge , MA , US : Harvard University Press Reference Library . Jump up ^ `` Piano '' . Virginia Tech Multimedia Music Dictionary . Retrieved 2012 - 03 - 19 . Jump up ^ `` Forte '' . Virginia Tech Multimedia Music Dictionary . Retrieved 2012 - 03 - 19 . ^ Jump up to : `` Dynamics '' . Virginia Tech Multimedia Music Dictionary . Retrieved 2012 - 03 - 19 . Jump up ^ Kennedy , Michael and Bourne , Joyce : The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music ( 1996 ) , entry `` Hairpins '' . Jump up ^ Gerou , Tom ; Lusk , Linda ( 1996 ) . Essential Dictionary of Music Notation : The Most Practical and Concise Source for Music Notation. Van Nuys , CA : Alfred Music Publishing . pp. 37 -- 38 . ISBN 978 - 0882847306 . Jump up ^ An Enigmatic Marking Explained , by Jeffrey Solow , Violoncello Society Newsletter , Spring 2000 Jump up ^ Holst , Gustav ( 1921 ) . The Planets ( PDF ) . London : Goodwin & Tabb . pp. 29 , 42 , 159 . Retrieved 25 April 2018 . Jump up ^ Tchaikovsky , Peter Ilyitch ( 1979 ) . Fourth , Fifth and Sixth Symphonies in Full Score ( PDF ) . New York : Dover Publications . First movement , just before Allegro vivo . ISBN 048623861X . OCLC 6414366 . CS1 maint : Date and year ( link ) Jump up ^ Nikolayev , Aleksandr ( ed . ) . P.I. Tchaikovsky : Complete Collected Works , Vol. 25 ( PDF ) . p. 79 . Retrieved 25 April 2018 . Jump up ^ Tchaikovsky , Peter Ilyich ( 1979 ) . Fourth , Fifth and Sixth Symphonies in Full Score ( PDF ) . New York : Dover Publications . pp. 18 , 65 ( on PDF ) . ISBN 048623861X . OCLC 6414366 . Jump up ^ ( 1965 ) . The Musical Times , Vol. 106 . Novello . Jump up ^ Strawinsky , Igor . FIrebird Suite ( PDF ) . New York : Boosey & Hawkes . p. 80 . Retrieved 25 April 2018 . Jump up ^ Rachmaninoff , Sergei ( 1911 ) . Thümer , Otto Gustav , ed . Album Book I. Op. 3 , Nos. 1 -- 5 ( PDF ) . London : Augener . p. 5 . Retrieved 25 April 2018 . Jump up ^ Mahler , Gustav ( 1909 ) . Symphonie No. 7 ( PDF ) . Leipzig : Eulenburg . p. 229 . Retrieved 26 April 2018 . Jump up ^ Nielson , Carl . Fjeldsøe , Michael , ed . Vaerker , Series II , No. 5 ( PDF ) . p. 128 . Retrieved 26 April 2018 . Jump up ^ `` György Ligeti - Études for Piano ( Book 2 ) , No. 9 ( 3 / 9 ) '' . YouTube . Event occurs at 3 : 34 . Retrieved 26 April 2018 . Jump up ^ `` György Ligeti - Études for Piano ( Book 2 ) , No. 13 ( 7 / 9 ) '' . YouTube . Event occurs at 5 : 12 -- 5 : 14 . Retrieved 26 April 2018 . Jump up ^ Donington , Robert : Baroque Music ( 1982 ) WW Norton , 1982 . ISBN 0 - 393 - 30052 - 8 . Page 32 . Jump up ^ Donington , Robert : Baroque Music ( 1982 ) WW Norton , 1982 . ISBN 0 - 393 - 30052 - 8 . Page 33 . Jump up ^ Katz , Robert ( 2002 ) . Mastering Audio . Amsterdam : Boston . p. 109 . ISBN 0 - 240 - 80545 - 3 . Jump up ^ Deruty , Emmanuel ( September 2011 ) . `` ' Dynamic Range ' & The Loudness War '' . Sound on Sound . Retrieved 2018 - 01 - 16 . Jump up ^ Elowsson , Anders ; Friberg , Anders . `` Predicting the perception of performed dynamics in music audio with ensemble learning '' ( PDF ) . The Acoustical Society of America . 141 ( 3 ) : 2224 -- 2242 . <Th_colspan="3"> Dynamics <Td_colspan="2"> Accent Fortepiano Hauptstimme Niente Pensato Sotto voce <Th_colspan="2"> Musical notation Staff 8 15 Abbreviation Bar / barline / measure Clef Da capo Dal segno Key signature Ledger line Mode Ossia Scale Rehearsal letter Repeat sign Tempo Time signature Transposition Transposing instrument Musical notes Accidental ( flat natural sharp ) Cue note Dotted note Grace note Note value ( beam notehead stem ) Pitch Rest Tacet Tuplet Tremolo Interval Helmholtz pitch notation Letter notation Scientific pitch notation Articulation Accent Sforzando ( musical direction ) Caesura Damping Dynamics Fermata Fingering Legato Marcato Ornament ( appoggiatura glissando grace note mordent slide trill ) Portato Slur Staccato Tenuto Tie Tonguing Sheet music History of music publishing Music engraving Popular - music publisher Sheet - music publisher Scorewriter Alternative Braille music Chord chart Fake book Figured bass Graphic notation Lead sheet Eye music Nashville number system Numbered musical notation Klavarskribo Tablature ( `` Tab '' ) Parsons Percussion notation Simplified Non-Western and ancient Chinese Kepatihan Kunkunshi Neume Swaralipi Shakuhachi Znamenny Related Mensural notation Music stand Sight - reading Sight singing Transcription <Td_colspan="2"> List of musical symbols Category : Musical notation <Th_colspan="3"> Musical technique General Articulation Bariolage Circular breathing Col legno Damping Embouchure Extended technique Fingering Finger substitution Finger vibrato Flutter - tonguing Free bowing Growling Intonation Martelé Overblowing Position Prepared guitar Slap tonguing Stopped note Third bridge Tonguing Thumb position Tremolo Vibrato By instrument Harmonica Piano Finger tapping Piano extended technique Three - hand technique Violin Bowing Pizzicato Voice Sprechgesang Related articles Étude <Td_colspan="3"> Category : Musical performance techniques Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dynamics_(music)&oldid=843267789 '' Categories : Musical notation Musical terminology Elements of music Hidden categories : CS1 maint : Date and year Articles with hAudio microformats All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from September 2017 Articles with unsourced statements from June 2017 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Беларуская Български Bosanski Català Čeština Dansk Deutsch Eesti Español Esperanto فارسی Français 한국어 Հայերեն Hrvatski Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית ქართული Latviešu Magyar Македонски മലയാളം Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Occitan Oʻzbekcha / ўзбекча Polski Português Русский Simple English Slovenščina Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska Tagalog Українська 中文 31 more Edit links This page was last edited on 28 May 2018 , at 00 : 53 . 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