Meaning & use
molto in music
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Meaning
phrasefixed phrase
In music, 'molto' means 'very' or 'much' and is used before tempo or expression marks to strengthen them.
Grammar: It appears before the word it describes, e.g. molto adagio = very slow.
Patterns
- molto + tempo word
- molto + expression word
The composer wrote 'molto allegro' at the start of the movement, meaning very fast.
In this piece, 'molto' tells the player to play with a lot of expression.
She explained that 'molto' in music is like 'very' in English.
Common combinations
- molto allegro
- The conductor asked for a molto allegro tempo, much faster than written.
- molto adagio
- The second movement is marked molto adagio, so play it very slowly.
- molto crescendo
- The score says molto crescendo, meaning get much louder.
- molto espressivo
- Play the melody molto espressivo, with deep feeling.
Synonyms and how they differ
Commonly confused: molto in music or motto?
molto in music vs motto
A motto is a short phrase or slogan, while molto is a musical direction meaning 'very'.
Practice
What does 'molto' mean when it appears in a musical score?
Choose one answer.
'Molto' is Italian for 'very' and makes the following direction stronger. 'Slowly' would be 'adagio', 'softly' is 'piano', and 'together' is 'insieme'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “molto in music”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.