Soft

Dynamics: the quiet levels

For loudness there is a graded language of Italian terms and abbreviations. From soft to loud: pianissimo (pp, very soft), piano (p, soft), mezzopiano (mp, moderately soft), mezzoforte (mf, moderately loud), forte (f, loud) and fortissimo (ff, very loud). These levels are not exact measurements but points of reference: forte means something different in a string quartet than in a large orchestra. What matters is the relationship to one another, the contrast, not the absolute level.

The quiet levels sound delicate, intimate and mysterious: in nature the quiet is often distant, delicate or mysterious, and music uses this association. A quiet beginning draws attention, because we have to make an effort to listen. A subito piano, a sudden drop into the quiet, can be more astonishing than any loud fortissimo, because it breaks the expectation.

Soft in the score

Voice and piano

• Après un Rêve Gabriel Fauré, op. 7 No. 1 · voice and piano, with chords for guitar · 2 pages

  The piano part begins with “pp”, the vocal part carries the marking “dolce”. Tempo marking “Andantino”, 3/4.

Piano

• Für Elise Ludwig van Beethoven, WoO 59 · piano · 3 pages

  The theme begins with “pp” under the first note, headed “Poco moto”.

Playing softly

It is better to begin more quietly than necessary; that leaves room to grow. Note the room as well: in a resonant church a piano carries further, and a fortissimo can overwhelm. In a dry small room the same effect needs more force. Dynamics are always an answer to the music, the fellow players and the surroundings.

Common mistakes

• Always playing at the same volume: If you do that, you throw away the most expressive building block.
• Equating soft with slow: Loudness and tempo are different building blocks.
• Confusing soft with timbre: Dynamics shapes how loud something sounds, timbre what it sounds with.