Tempo primo

Back to the beginning

A piece begins at a certain tempo. In the course of it this tempo can change, through a rallentando, an accelerando, a più mosso or a slower interlude. “Tempo primo” (Italian “first tempo”) calls back the opening tempo. The abbreviations “Tempo I” and “Tempo 1°” mean the same.

Tempo primo and a tempo

“A tempo” cancels a tempo change and leads back to the tempo that held before the change. “Tempo primo”, by contrast, leads expressly to the first tempo of the piece. If only a single tempo change occurs in the piece, both mean the same. But if several tempos have followed one another, an “a tempo” can point to a middle tempo and “tempo primo” to the very first. Some reference works also give “in the previous tempo” for “tempo primo”, which with several changes means something else.

Where you find it

Tempo primo often appears after a middle section or a transition, when the opening section returns, for instance in three-part forms. It shows that the piece has returned to its starting point. The change takes place at the place where the mark appears.

Common mistakes

• Returning too slowly: Tempo primo takes effect immediately, not only after a few bars (the audio example quickens within one note).
• Choosing the tempo “by feel”: The opening tempo is fixed; use the metronome to help.
• Equating tempo primo and a tempo: With several changes they differ.