Meaning & use
agitato in music
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Meanings
adverbmusic
A musical direction to play in a restless, excited, or agitated manner.
Grammar: Used as a performance instruction, often after the tempo marking: 'Allegro agitato.'
Patterns
- play agitato
- marked agitato
The pianist played the passage agitato, with a nervous energy.
The score is marked agitato, so the strings should sound restless.
The conductor asked for a more agitato feel in the finale.
adjectivebefore a nounmusic
Describing a piece or passage of music that is agitated or restless in character.
Grammar: Comes before the noun: 'an agitato section.'
Patterns
- agitato passage
- agitato section
The agitato section contrasts with the calm opening.
Beethoven's agitato passages often suggest inner turmoil.
The orchestra captured the agitato mood perfectly.
Common combinations
- allegro agitato
- The movement is marked allegro agitato.
- play agitato
- She played the coda agitato, with growing excitement.
- agitato passage
- The agitato passage requires precise bow control.
Synonyms and how they differ
- agitato
- This is the term itself; other languages may use 'agité' (French) or 'bewegt' (German) for similar effects.
- con moto
- Con moto means 'with movement' and is less specific about the restless, excited quality.
Opposites
Commonly confused: agitato in music or agitate?
agitato in music vs agitate
Agitate is an English verb meaning to disturb or worry; agitato is an Italian musical direction.
Practice
In music, what does the instruction 'agitato' tell a performer to do?
Choose one answer.
Agitato means 'agitated' in Italian, so it directs the performer to play in a restless, excited manner. Playing softly (piano), slowly (adagio), or short and detached (staccato) are different instructions.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “agitato in music”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.