Con espressione

As Printed on a Score

Printed beside the dynamic or attached to a tempo word — Adagio con espressione, Largo assai e con espressione — and abbreviated con espress. beside a p. It applies to the phrase or passage it begins and lasts until the next character direction; nothing formally cancels it.

Abbreviations: con espress., con espr.

How Composers Use It

Con espressione is the Classical way of saying espressivo: shape the phrase with feeling, through nuance of dynamics, timing and tone. Haydn and Beethoven use it in headings and at lyrical turns; later scores mostly prefer the shorter espressivo, so it gives a score a slightly period flavour. It combines well with plain words — Beethoven’s con espressione e semplice asks for feeling without ornament.

Example

Beethoven, Piano Sonata No. 17 in D minor, Op. 31 No. 2 (“Tempest”), first movement, recapitulation: after a pp “Largo”, the recitative is marked “con espressione e semplice”, and the direction returns for the second recitative a few bars later.

Related Terms