Dictionary of Music - Birding America

tenor clef 425most of the “errors” are too small to be heard, andfurther, listeners have become so accustomed to theinaccuracies that they sound correct.temple blockAnother name for WOOD BLOCK.tempo (tem′pō) pl. tempos, tempi (tem′pōs,tem′pē). The rate of speed at which a piece ofmusic is performed. Until about 1700, various conventionsof tempo were followed, indicated by thenotes themselves. Since then, composers generallyhave indicated tempo by the use of certain terms.This practice began in Italy, and as a result the conventionaltempo indications are still in Italian. Themost important of them are shown in the accompanyingtable.Changing tempos, becoming faster, slower, orsimply varying, are indicated by RITARDANDO, RAL-LENTANDO, ACCELERANDO, and RUBATO.TEMPO INDICATIONM.M.*lentissimolarghissimolargo, lento40}40–60larghetto 60–66adagio 66–76andante 76–108moderate, allegretto 108–120allegro 120–168presto 168–200prestissimo 200–208* M.M = number of quarter notes per minuteWith the invention of the METRONOME composerscould be quite precise in indicating tempo, bytelling exactly how long a quarter note, for example,is supposed to be held; thus the sign = 60 M.M.means that a quarter note should be held for exactly1/60 of a minute, or 1 second. In practice, however,performers and conductors still tend to regard tempoas a matter of interpretation, and they rarely followmetronomic signs very precisely —a tempo Adirection to return to the original tempo. —tempogiusto See under GIUSTO. —tempo primo Adirection to return to the original tempo (used at thebeginning of the piece or section). Often abbreviatedtempo I°. —tempo rubato See RUBATO.tempo ordinario (tem′pô or dē när′ē ô) Italian.The Italian term for COMMON METER.ten.An abbreviation for TENUTO.teneramente (te′′ner ä men′te) Italian. Also, contenerezza (kôn te′′ner et′sä). A direction to performdelicately and softly, with tenderness.tenor (ten′ər). 1 The highest range of male voice inmodern choral music (in earlier music the highest wasthe boy soprano; see SOPRANO, def. 2). Its range isfrom the second B below middle C to the G abovemiddle C, although a trained voice can exceed thisrange by a number of notes. Music for tenor voice isoften written in the treble clef, an octave higher than itsounds. In choral music for four voice-parts, in whichthe tenor sings the second lowest part (the lowest issung by the bass), the music may be written in the bassclef. Operatic tenors are sometimes classified accordingto their tone quality: lyric tenor, a light, sweetvoice; Heldentenor (hel′den te nôr′′, German for“heroic tenor”), a brilliant, expressive, powerful butstill agile voice. 2 In polyphonic music of the MiddleAges, the lowest voice-part, which carried the cantusfirmus (fixed melody) on which the other parts werebased. The word tenor comes from the Latin tenere,“to hold,” the part being so called because the cantusfirmus usually consisted of long-held notes. (See alsoORGANUM.) After about 1450, a lower part (the bass)was generally added, putting the tenor in its presentdayposition. 3 The basic reciting note of a PSALMTONE. 4 Among instruments that are built in varioussizes, an instrument having about the same range asthe tenor voice, such as the tenor saxophone or tenortrombone. In size it is larger than the alto or sopranomembers of the family but smaller than the bass.tenor clefSee under CLEF.fig. 235 p/ufrom p. 445