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Very slow and solemn; the slowest standard tempo marking, typically 40–50 BPM.
Use Grave to open a work or movement with maximum weight and solemnity. It implies not just slow tempo but heavy, portentous character — each note should feel inevitable. Reserve it for introductions to serious works or funeral/tragic contexts.
Beethoven opens his "Pathétique" Sonata, Op. 13 with a Grave introduction — massive chords descending chromatically, establishing the tragic tone before the Allegro di molto.
Grave is one of 228 terms in the Gradus musical dictionary, where every definition is written around how composers actually use the word.
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