Andantino con moto

As Printed on a Score

Printed above the first system as the heading of a piece, song or movement, and in force until the next tempo word. After a contrasting middle section the return is usually marked Tempo I or a tempo rather than by repeating the full heading.

How Composers Use It

In most 19th-century usage andantino is already a little more flowing than Andante, and con moto confirms the direction: keep the music moving lightly, with no lingering. Since andantino is notoriously ambiguous — earlier writers sometimes meant slower than andante — con moto is a useful clarifier. It suits gently animated pieces with rippling or rocking accompaniments that need a pulse that flows yet never hurries.

Example

Debussy, Arabesque No. 1 in E major, m. 1: “Andantino con moto”, at p.

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