Etwas ruhiger

As Printed on a Score

Printed above the staff at the start of a calmer episode, sometimes with an Italian equivalent (Poco più tranquillo) beside it; it holds until the next tempo word, often Tempo I.

How Composers Use It

A small, natural easing — the German poco più tranquillo — ideal for a contrasting theme that should breathe without losing the movement’s pulse. Mahler uses it in the Fifth Symphony’s second movement and Scherzo. Pair it with allmählich or unmerklich if the change should not be heard as a step.

Example

Mahler, Symphony No. 5, third movement (Scherzo), m. 136: “Etwas ruhiger.”, in a movement headed “Kräftig, nicht zu schnell.”

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