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In; as in “in tempo” and “in modo di”, and in instrument labels such as “Clarinetto in B” or “Corno in F”, where it names the instrument’s transposition.
Appears inside phrases: “in tempo” (back in strict time, often after a cadenza or ad libitum), “in modo di” (in the manner of), and above all in instrument labels (“Clarinetti in B”, “Corni in F”, “Timpani in D–A”), where it gives the transposition or tuning, which holds until a muta in changes it.
In a part label, in tells the player which instrument to take up and how the written notes relate to the sound: a clarinet in B-flat sounds a major second lower than written, a horn in F a perfect fifth lower. Write the transposition on the first system and again whenever it changes, with muta in in the rests before. In tempo after a free passage tells players the pulse is strict again.
Mozart, Piano Sonata No. 13 in B-flat major, K. 333, third movement (Allegretto grazioso), m. 199: “in tempo” at p, one bar after “ad libitum”.
In is one of 1755 terms in the Gradus musical dictionary: the words, abbreviations and instrument names that appear in printed scores, plus the vocabulary composers use to talk about them.
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