Nachschlag

What it means

Nachschlag designates the short notes that close an ornament — above all the two notes with which a trill leads into the following note: lower auxiliary note and main note, before the melody continues. Without this ending a trill ends open, which seems unsatisfying in many contexts.

The term is also used more generally: for small notes placed after a main note and belonging to it rhythmically, not to the following one. The Nachschlag is thus the counterpart to the Vorschlag (appoggiatura/grace note), which precedes the main note.

A Nachschlag takes its time from the main note, not from the following note. It is therefore played at the end of the note's duration.

In the notation

The Nachschlag is notated either written out as small notes after the main note, or not at all — with trills it belongs in many styles as a matter of course, even without a sign. Some editions show it by a small hook at the end of the trill's wavy line. Where it is not wanted, an explicit note is occasionally found.

Musical use

The Nachschlag connects the ornament with what follows and ensures that a trill does not break off but leads back into the melody. In cadences it is almost indispensable, because there the trill stands on a long note and must be resolved. In chains of trills it is omitted at the middle links and stands only at the close.

The Nachschlag usually consists of two small notes and leads over to the next main note. It closes trills elegantly above all.

Performance practice

Play the Nachschlag within the duration of the main note and not at the expense of the following one — otherwise the melody arrives too late. Keep it light and at the same tempo as the preceding ornament, so that no break arises. Plan it in from the start, instead of appending it afterward. And check in the edition's preface whether trills in this style are fundamentally to be played with a Nachschlag.