Restrained

What it means

Verhalten is a German performance marking and calls for a restrained delivery: expression, loudness, and movement are not fully unfolded but held back. The music should seem as though it is holding back something that could be stronger.

The marking concerns above all expression, but it affects dynamics and tempo. A restrained performance is as a rule quiet and calm, yet the core lies in inner tension, not in weakness.

Verhalten differs from zögernd, which means a holding-back of the tempo, in its scope: it concerns the whole expression. It differs from beklemmt, which designates constriction and distress, through the absence of negative colouring — restraint can also express dignity or shyness. It differs from nachdenklich (pensive) in that something is held back, rather than turned inward.

In the notation

The word stands above the staff at the beginning of the relevant section, in German-language editions in place of an Italian marking, and holds until a new marking. It is often found together with soft dynamics and a plain texture.

Musical use

The designation is used in sections whose expression arises precisely from restraint: in songs with restrained text, in introductions that prepare an intensification, in middle sections of character pieces. In nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century music it is among the frequent German performance words.

The instruction calls for a restrained performance with muted dynamics and a calm tempo. It stands in German Romantic scores and corresponds to the Italian trattenuto. The music should sound as if muted or held within itself.

Performance practice

Keep the tension in the tone while you pull back loudness and movement — restrained means tense, not slack. Avoid large dynamic arcs and pronounced accents. Take care that the sound nonetheless carries. And use the contrast: the effect of a restrained section often shows itself only when what was held back breaks forth later.