accelerando

American  

[ak-sel-uh-ran-doh, -rahn-, aht-che-le-rahn-daw] / ækˌsɛl əˈræn doʊ, -ˈrɑn-, ɑtˌtʃɛ lɛˈrɑn dɔ /

adverb

Music.

1. gradually increasing in speed.

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accelerando British  

/ ækˌsɛləˈrændəʊ /

adjective

1. (to be performed) with increasing speed

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noun

1. an increase in speed

Usage

What does accelerando mean? Accelerando describes a tempo that is gradually increasing in speed. In music, accelerando tells a musician to play increasingly faster. Typically, music’s speed, or tempo, is denoted in beats per minute (BPM). When the BPM changes, the tempo of the music instantly changes. But when a tempo change is marked with an accelerando command, it will gradually increase over the notes indicated rather than changing instantly. Accelerando commands are often used in music to create a sense of urgency, excitement, or increasing emotion as the tempo increases. Example: We still need to work on that accelerando section because some of the instruments are dragging.

Etymology

Origin of accelerando

1835–45; < Italian < Latin accelerandus, gerundive of accelerāre to speed up. See accelerate

Explanation

The instruction accelerando in a piece of music tells you to gradually up the tempo. In other words, start singing or playing a little bit faster and slowly continue to increase the speed. Accelerando is an Italian word meaning "gradually speeding up." The word is related to the English word accelerate, "to gain speed." Both words come from the Latin verb accelerare, "to quicken." The -ando and -endo suffixes in Italian indicate a gradual process of change; the related (but opposite) meaning of ritardando is "gradually slowing down." Accelerando can name or describe a piece of music, or it can describe how a piece should be performed.

Example Sentences

I’m not saying they can’t do it, but I am saying that they have a lot of work ahead of them and it’s unclear if it’s a priority or not.” accelerando Well put.

From Forbes • May 16, 2012

As exhilarating as the final accelerando of Tchaikovsky's Fourth Symphony were the dancelike body movements with which Ozawa conducted it.

From Time Magazine Archive

An expanse of heads nodded rhythmically until a galloping accelerando brought the audience to their feet.

From Time Magazine Archive

Tape recorder in hand, he simply camps at the seashore or in a rain forest, and lets Mother Nature herself compose an accelerando of breaking waves or a pizzicato polka of storm effects.

From Time Magazine Archive

Thus e.g., crescendo poco a poco al forte ed un pochettino accelerando, is seen to mean merely—"increase gradually to forte and accelerate a very little bit."

From Music Notation and Terminology by Gehrkens, Karl Wilson