Bien marqué

As Printed on a Score

Printed over the line or figure that needs emphasis, often in an accompaniment or inner voice, sometimes with accents added to the notes. It lasts for the passage or figure it marks, until another articulation or character word takes over.

Also spelled: bien marque

How Composers Use It

It asks for clear, emphatic articulation: each note, or the rhythm of a figure, distinctly marked with some accent. In piano and ensemble music it often brings a melody or bass out of the texture. It is the French equivalent of ben marcato. Combine it with a dynamic — at mf, as Bizet writes it, it brings out a line without making it loud.

Example

Bizet, 20 Mélodies, Op. 21, “Après l’hiver”, piano, m. 18: “bien marqué”, at mf; the song opens “Andantino quasi allegretto” with “legatissimo”.

Related Terms