Expression & tempo
Tempo
Tempo is the speed of a piece, given either as an Italian term such as Allegro or Adagio or as a precise metronome marking in beats per minute.
Traditional Italian markings describe character as well as speed: Largo suggests breadth, Adagio is slow, Andante suggests a walking pace, Moderato is moderate, Allegro is fast and Presto is very fast. Their interpretation depends on the piece, period, metre and note values; BPM ranges printed on metronomes are guides, not universal definitions. A numerical marking specifies a note value and a rate, such as quarter note = 80.
Choose a practice tempo at which you can play a passage comfortably and accurately. Repeat it while listening for steady rhythm and relaxed movement, then raise the metronome a few beats at a time. If accuracy or ease deteriorates, slow down again. The written performance tempo is a destination, not a requirement for every practice attempt.
Try it now · no account needed
Read a tempo marking, then count it
A quarter-note (crotchet) marking of 60 means 60 quarter notes in one minute: one each second. In 4/4, four of these beats fill a bar.
Quarter note = 60 · Count: 1 2 3 4 · One bar lasts 4 seconds
The note symbol matters as much as the number. A dotted-quarter marking of 60 in 6/8 gives two main beats per bar, each containing three eighth notes. That bar lasts two seconds.
Check your understanding
At quarter note = 120, how long does one complete bar of 3/4 last, with no tempo changes or pauses?
Show answer and explanation
1.5 seconds. Each quarter note lasts 60 ÷ 120 = 0.5 seconds; three beats last 3 × 0.5 = 1.5 seconds.
A common mix-up
BPM does not tell you the duration of every written note. First identify which note value the tempo marking assigns to each click; then subdivide or combine clicks for other values.
Related terms
Every term in this glossary is taught in context somewhere in Arco's curricula, on the staff, on the keyboard, and on your own fingerboard at the same time.