Breiter Strich

As Printed on a Score

Printed over a string part at the start of a passage needing broad strokes, sometimes inflected (“breiten Strich!”). It lasts until another bowing word.

Also spelled: breiten Strich

How Composers Use It

A broad stroke uses plenty of bow at moderate pressure, giving each note length and resonance — separate but not short. It is not a dynamic: Mahler asks for it at p as well as f, where it gives a soft line body and presence. Use it for weighty melodies and for any line that should sound sustained yet articulated.

Example

Mahler, Symphony No. 5, fourth movement (Adagietto), second violins, m. 17: “breiter Strich” at p, falling to pp two bars later.

Related Terms