Music Theory · Repeats, Dynamics & Articulation

What is the difference between ritardando and accelerando, and what does 'a tempo' do after either one?

Sign in to see the full answer — free to start on the web.

This is one card from the KnowCard library. The full way to learn it — spaced-repetition review, progress tracking, and AI explanations — lives in the KnowCard app, free to start on the web. iOS & Android are coming soon.

Get started — it’s free

Already have an account? Sign in →

More in Repeats, Dynamics & Articulation

A tie (liaison de prolongation) and a slur both look like a curved line joining two notes. What single fact tells them apart?
Two notes of the SAME pitch are joined by a curved line, then two notes of DIFFERENT pitch are joined by a curved line. Name each marking.
Why does a tie joining two quarter notes of the same pitch NOT sound like two separate quarter notes?
Order these dynamics from softest to loudest: f, pp, mf, ff, mp, p, ppp, fff
Which is louder, mp or mf, and what does each abbreviation stand for?
What does the dynamic marking ppp mean, and how does it differ from pp?