Einhaltend

As Printed on a Score

Printed above the staff, usually inside a longer instruction (“Das Tempo unmerklich etwas einhaltend.”), at the point where the holding back begins; it lasts until a new tempo word or a return.

How Composers Use It

Holding back, restraining — a gentle retarding of the tempo, usually less than zurückhaltend. Mahler’s qualifiers (unmerklich, etwas) show it at its most subtle: a tempo that settles rather than slows. Mark the return, or use it where the music is heading toward a calmer section anyway.

Example

Mahler, Symphony No. 5, third movement (Scherzo), m. 614: “Das Tempo unmerklich etwas einhaltend.”

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