Seconda volta

What it means

Seconda volta means “second time” and designates the bars played on the second pass of a repeat in place of the first ending bars. The point is that a section leads back the first time — to the beginning of the repeat — and continues onward the second time into what follows. The two endings are different, although everything before them stays the same.

In the notation

Above the bars concerned stand horizontal brackets with numbers: a bracket with “1” over the bars of the first pass, one with “2” over those of the second. At the end of the first bracket stands the repeat sign, pointing back; on the second pass the first bracket is skipped and one moves directly into the second. More than two brackets are possible, as are number ranges such as “1.–3.,” which combine several passes. The corresponding designation for the first ending is prima volta.

Musical use

Repeats with different endings belong to the fixed stock of forms resting on two repeated parts: dance movements, binary forms, the exposition of a sonata movement. Musically the difference between the two endings is often considerable — the first prepares harmonically the return to the beginning, the second leads into a new key or to the next section. Whoever omits the repeat therefore loses not only length but also this turn.

The second bracket replaces the first on the second pass and leads onward or to the close. It is often notated with the figure 2 and a bracket over the bars concerned. If there are more than two passes, further brackets are numbered.

Performance practice

Read the brackets before you play through a piece for the first time, and, with nested repeats, write the sequence in the margin — errors arise almost always at the jump, not at the playing. Practise the transition into the second bracket separately, for there the music changes into new territory and demands full attention. In ensemble, agree on whether repeats are executed, and keep to it; nothing pulls an ensemble apart faster.