Dynamics in Music

Dynamics tell us how loud or how soft to play.

Terminology

• Piano: An Italian word that means soft. You'll see it written with a little P.
• Forte: An Italian word that means loud. It's written with an F.

Playing Dynamics

• When you see a P in your music:

  • Play softly by pressing lightly on the keys.

• When you see an F in your music:

  • Play more loudly by applying more pressure when you play the keys.

Examples

Let's look at an example. I'll play a couple of examples for you, and you tell me if it is piano or forte.

1. First Example:

   • If you guessed forte, you're absolutely right.

2. Second Example:

   • If you guessed piano, that's it.

3. Third Example:

   • Once again, I might have tricked you. The beginning part of that was forte and the second part was piano.

Next Steps

Next, we'll look at a performance piece, Raise the Bar, where we'll put together articulation and dynamics.