Con brio
With fire, with verve.
What it means
Con brio means “with verve, with fire” and calls for a spirited performance. The phrase is the usual form in which the noun brio appears in the score.
What is meant is a bundle of means: energetic articulation, distinct emphasis on the strong beats, a tempo with forward pull, dynamics without restraint. The marking therefore does not concern the tempo alone, but it has an effect on it — an Allegro con brio is as a rule brisker and more incisive than a plain Allegro.
Related are energico, which means strength and decisiveness, feurig as the German equivalent, and spiritoso, which denotes something more alert. Where a distinction is made, con brio means the rousing verve.
In the notation
The phrase is written in italics above the first staff, usually after a tempo word, and becomes part of the movement's name. It applies until a new marking. Typical neighbours are accents, short articulation marks, syncopations, and strong dynamics.
Musical use
The marking belongs to the Viennese Classical period and to the music of the nineteenth century. It stands over outer movements of symphonies, sonatas, and quartets that live from incisive motifs and distinct contrasts. In the piano literature it heads virtuoso movements, in chamber music those with a lively interplay of voices.
Con brio is especially associated with Beethoven, who used it in many opening movements, for instance in the Third and Fifth Symphonies. It describes fire and verve, not a particular tempo range, and usually stands after a tempo marking such as allegro. The music should seem energetic and incisive, with clear accents and taut rhythm. Excessive haste contradicts the character: the fire arises from tension, not from the highest possible tempo.
Performance practice
Look for the verve first in the articulation: short notes short, accents decisive, strong beats distinct. Keep the tempo stable so that temperament does not turn into haste. Bring out syncopations and accents on weak beats, for they carry the energy. And keep reserve in the dynamics so that climaxes can still intensify.