Understanding theory
W
hen you start to read music, all those
dots and symbols on the page can
look confusing. But as you get more
confident, you can then start to put
more ‘oomph’ into your music when you come
across dynamics.
Essentially, musical dynamics control the
volume of a piece. They are Italian words that are
abbreviated or symbolised alongside the notes on
the stave and are just one way that the composeris telling you to inject more feeling and personality
into a song, rather than just routinely playing the
notes off a page.
The basic dynamics are forte (f) and piano (p).
These mean loud and quiet respectively. However
there are plenty more variations, for example
pianissimo (pp) means very quiet and fortissimo (ff)
means very loud. The word ‘mezzo’ is often added
on to these, which means moderate, so mezzo-forte
(mf) means moderately loud.Symbols are also used. A crescendo is symbolised
with a < and means ‘getting louder’. Similarly, a
diminuendo (>) means getting quieter. Check out
our table of the most common musical dynamics
to learn.
As musical instruments have a limit to just how
loud or quiet they can sound, you don’t want to play
your loudest when seeing a forte symbol, only to
turn the page and realise that the piece escalates to
fortissimo and you cannot play any louder.Control the volume
with dynamics
Inject more personality into your music by learning
to read and play using dynamicsMaster dynamics
Get to grips with dynamics for soft, soothing melodies or clanging compositions
01 Static instructions
For directions such as piano (p) and forte (f), all notes should be played at that
volume until further instruction. Here, the instructions get louder each bar, from
mezzo forte (mf), to forte (f) and then fortissimo (ff).03 All change
Quick changes in volume are marked with instructions like sforzando (sfz), which
is used for a sudden burst with an accent. In this example, the first notes are
played softly (pianissimo) and the sforzando note bursts out at the end.02 Dynamic transitions
Instructions such as crescendo and diminuendo mean that the music should
gradually begin to change. The example above is a more gradual example than
in Step 1. The right hand should get louder as the piece goes on.04 It’s all relative
You need to interpret the dynamics of the music and look at the piece’s context,
mood and style to gauge how loudly or softly you play. Remember it’s about
volume and not to be confused with ‘articulation’, which deals with expression.