Tempo dot

Discuss the rules of notation, standard notation practices, efficient notation practices and graphic design.
Post Reply
User avatar
OCTO
Posts: 1742
Joined: 05 Oct 2015, 06:52
Location: Sweden

Tempo dot

Post by OCTO »

I am very curious about the following opinion/rule.
The most of the classical printed music has the tempo indication that concludes with a dot [.].
But many engravers completely ignore that today.
Is it the old practice or neglecting of the rule?

Examples:
Allegro.
Molto adagio. (Alla breve.)


French scores have missing it, but usually the German scores have it.
Any idea?
Freelance Composer. Self-Publisher.
Finale 27.3 • Sibelius 2023.5• MuseScore 4+ • Logic Pro X+ • Ableton Live 11+ • Digital Performer 10+ /// MacOS Monterey (secondary in use systems: Fedora 35, Windows 10)
Knut
Posts: 867
Joined: 05 Oct 2015, 18:07
Location: Oslo, Norway

Re: Tempo dot

Post by Knut »

German scores seem to use a lot of periods overall. Often, there are dots following titles, subtitles, composer, etc., as well as tempo indications. I suppose language specific typographical convention might dictate whether or not they're appropriate, but other than that, they seems to be purely stylistic. I personally don't like this practice, as a tempo indication is not a sentence, and the score looks cleaner without periods everywhere.
MJCube
Posts: 130
Joined: 15 Dec 2015, 13:32
Location: NYC

Re: Tempo dot

Post by MJCube »

I quite agree with Knut. Another special use of periods in German is for ordinal numbers: 1 = one; 1. = First.
Knut
Posts: 867
Joined: 05 Oct 2015, 18:07
Location: Oslo, Norway

Re: Tempo dot

Post by Knut »

MJCube wrote:Another special use of periods in German is for ordinal numbers: 1 = one; 1. = First.
I think this is common within the germanic languages. It's certainly the same in Norwegian.
User avatar
OCTO
Posts: 1742
Joined: 05 Oct 2015, 06:52
Location: Sweden

Re: Tempo dot

Post by OCTO »

Thanks Knut, very clear reasoning. I was forcing my students to write "Largo."
And yes, I was schooled in german theory tradition...

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
Freelance Composer. Self-Publisher.
Finale 27.3 • Sibelius 2023.5• MuseScore 4+ • Logic Pro X+ • Ableton Live 11+ • Digital Performer 10+ /// MacOS Monterey (secondary in use systems: Fedora 35, Windows 10)
User avatar
John Ruggero
Posts: 2453
Joined: 05 Oct 2015, 14:25
Location: Raleigh, NC USA

Re: Tempo dot

Post by John Ruggero »

And it appears to be an older German tradition. Henle and Wiener Urtext do not use it.
M1 Mac mini (OS 12.4), Dorico, Finale 25.5, GPO 4, Affinity Publisher 2, SmartScore 64 Pro, JW Plug-ins, TG Tools, Keyboard maestro

http://www.cantilenapress.com
basso.continuo
Posts: 2
Joined: 06 Oct 2015, 08:39

Re: Tempo dot

Post by basso.continuo »

Yes, it is a historical German tradition. Not only for music but for everything: books, newspapers, signatures etc. A dot used to be behind everything.
Post Reply