Vivo
Vivo means “lively, vivid”. It describes less a fixed value than an attitude: the music should be agile and full of life. Related is Vivace, which lies on the tempo scale between Allegro and Presto.
- Meaning
- lively, vivid
- Related
- Vivace (156–176 bpm)
- Increase
- Più vivo, livelier
- Written
- above the staff
Lively rather than just fast
The building block Tempo lists Vivace as “lively” in the series from slow to fast between Allegro and Presto. The page Tools gives 156 to 176 beats per minute for it. Vivo is the simpler word from the same root. As with all tempo words, what the building block Tempo says applies here too: the word describes character and feeling, not only speed.
| Tempo word | Meaning | bpm |
|---|---|---|
| Moderato | moderate | 108–120 |
| Allegro | lively, fast | 120–156 |
| Vivace | vivacious | 156–176 |
| Presto | very fast | 168–200 |
When the tempo picks up
In Grieg's “In der Halle des Bergkönigs” the music builds over the whole piece. The score makes the increase explicit at one place: the “Più vivo” names a new metronome number. The increase works together with the dynamics and the octave-doubled register, as the building block Tempo describes: a driving rhythm or a crescendo can strengthen the impression of acceleration.
Piano
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In der Halle des Bergkönigs Edvard Grieg, op. 46 No. 4, Peer Gynt Suite No. 1 · piano · 4 pages
The piece begins “Alla marcia molto marcato” with a metronome mark of 138. On page 3, shortly after bar 48, there is “Più vivo” with the mark 154 and ff, and from there the right hand is notated with an octave sign (8). The tempo is thus explicitly increased, and the number says by how much.
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Related terms
VivaceAllegroPrestoTempoMetronomeAccelerandoModerato
Editor: Maik Krohm · reviewed on 3 October 2026
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