The Short

310 TEMPO
fast as smaller notes in those species of measure where the parts of the measure are represented by notes of a
smaller form. As in 2/2 measure e.g. the half-notes represent precisely the same thing as the quarter-notes do in 2/
4 measure; and the quarter notes in the former, the same as the eighth-notes in the latter; eighth-notes in the
former, the same as sixteenth-notes in the latter &c;—so it appears that half-notes are executed as fast in the
former, as quarter-notes are in the latter, &c. Hence it appears, finally, even a matter of indifference, which mode of
writing a man chooses; every piece of music in 2/4 measure might be written not only in 2/2 measure, but also in
2/1 measure, or 2/8 measure, &c. Thus the matter stands, considered in itself and its relation to time; but it is
conceded, that, the 2/2 measure should have a somewhat different mode of delivery from the 2/4 or the 2/8
measure, and that the 3/2 measure also should have a mode of delivery somewhat different from that of 3/8
measure; that is to say a piece of music is in a manner delivered more lightly and softly [delicately] in proportion as it
is written in the smaller notes, or, in other words, the larger the denominator—the lower the figure of the fraction;
and on the other hand, the delivery is more heavy and firm, in proportion as the species of note is greater; and thus
e.g. the manner of delivering quarter-notes in allegro, is different from that of delivering sixteenth-notes in adagio
though the latter are perhaps as quick in their movement as the former. In this respect, the difference in the
designation of the measures furnishes the composer with an additional means of indicating, in a certain particular,
the character in which he wishes to have his composition delivered; and consequently it is not unimportant to
choose the most suitable designation of the measure. 578
for determining tempo Gottfried Weber, as already mentioned, preferred to rely on chronometric tempo indications,
which he included in his own compositions, advocating the use of a simple pendulum rather than a metronome.
With Liszt and, above all, Wagner a move towards simplification in the employment of metres was inevitably related to
a change in the significance of note values for tempo. Liszt's Faust-Symphonie, with its constant time changes between ?
(4/4), 6/4, 2/4, and 3/4 (‘Faust’) or between 2/4, 6/8, ♩, 3/4, and ? (‘Mephistopheles’), illustrates the imperatives in
this music that caused an inevitable reassessment of the implications of metre. The ever-increasing individualism of
musical gesture in a single section or movement was seen to be essentially incompatible with the ‘collectivism’ inherent
in the old system: the intended expression of the piece could not be adequately conveyed to any extent by the choice of
metre; the constantly fluctuating nuances had to be indicated by other means. Liszt's use of ? and ? is particularly
revealing, for the choice of one or other of these metres seems to be directly related to the convenience of the
conductor. For greater clarity he even headed the sections in ? ‘Alla breve taktieren’ (i.e. beat in 2). Wagner, as in so
many other respects, followed him in this approach to alla breve. 579 Richard Strauss, too, seems largely to have thought
of metre in terms of conducting; in Also sprach Zarathustra, for instance, he followed an accelerando with the instruction
‘sehr schnell (alla breve)’ (very fast (alla breve)) and ten bars later ‘Ziemlich langsam (in
578
Theory, i. 88–9.
579
See Ch. 9.