Musical terms

Classical music often uses Italian terms to describe the mood or tempo of a movement in an orchestral work.

Commonly used terms are:

Adagio \- slow
Adagissimo \- very slow
Afettuoso \- affectionate, with tender emotion
Agitato \- agitated, restless and wild
Allegretto \- moderately quick movement, somewhat slower than allegro
Allegro \- lively (sometimes used with other qualifiers)
Andante \- a moderate tempo (walking pace)
Assai \- very (as in "allegro assai" = very lively)
Brio \- brilliant; usually "con brio" = with vivacity, energy, fire
Cantabile \- singable
Forte \- loud
Fortissimo \- very loud
Grazioso \- graceful
Largetto \- slow and broad but less so than largo
Largo \- slow and broad
Lento \- same as "largo"
Maestoso \- majestic
Molto \- very, much
Non troppo \- not too much (as in "allegro non troppo" = lively but not too lively)
Ostinato \- a short recurring theme or phase lasting the length of a composition or movement.
Piano \- soft, abbreviated
Pianissimo \- very soft and abbreviated
poco \- little
Presto \- originally lively, but later the fastest speed in normal use
Sostenuto \- sustained
Prestissimo \- the fastest speed possible
Vivace \- lively