Abbandono

As Printed on a Score

Printed as con abbandono above the staff (or above a solo part) at the phrase it colours; it lasts for that phrase or passage rather than a fixed span, and is usually followed by a return to measured expression.

Also spelled: con abbandono

How Composers Use It

Abandon means letting go: rubato, a freer and fuller tone, the restraint of the surrounding music dropped for a moment. It is a Romantic and later marking that only works if what surrounds it is more controlled. Reserve it for a peak; if every phrase is marked with abandon, nothing is left to abandon.

Example

Quilter, “Cherry Ripe”, To Julia, Op. 8, oboe, m. 42: “con abbandono”, in a song headed “Allegro con brio”; the oboe’s last dynamic, four bars earlier, was mp.