tempo giusto

Meaning

1. 1phrasefixed phrasemusic

   A musical instruction asking the performer to play at the proper, natural speed for the piece, keeping steady time.

   Grammar: Appears as a marking above the music, not in normal sentences about speed.

   The composer wrote tempo giusto above the opening bars and left the exact speed to the conductor.

   The pianist took the passage at tempo giusto, neither rushing nor dragging.

   Students often ask what tempo giusto means when no metronome mark is given.

Common combinations

marked tempo giusto

The movement is marked tempo giusto.

play at tempo giusto

Try to play at tempo giusto from the first bar.

return to tempo giusto

After the slow section the music returns to tempo giusto.

a tempo giusto indication

A tempo giusto indication appears in the baroque score.

Synonyms and how they differ

in strict time

In strict time stresses keeping an exact steady beat, while tempo giusto stresses an appropriate speed.

a tempo

A tempo means go back to the original speed after a change, whereas tempo giusto sets the proper speed in the first place.

moderato

Moderato means a medium speed, but tempo giusto does not commit to one pace.

Opposites

Word family

tempo noun

the speed of a piece of music

giusto adjective

Italian for just or fitting, as in a musical marking

tempi noun

plural of tempo

Commonly confused: tempo giusto or tempo rubato?

Practice

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