Kurz gestrichen

As Printed on a Score

Printed over a string part at a passage of short, separate strokes; Italian equivalents (spiccato, staccato) may appear in other parts at the same point. It lasts until another bowing word.

How Composers Use It

Short strokes on the string, crisp and separate but not necessarily bounced. It lets a composer ask for clarity without choosing between staccato dots, spiccato and martelé. Bruckner uses it for light, articulated accompaniment figures. Add dots if you want the length explicit, and spiccato if the bow should leave the string.

Example

Bruckner, Symphony No. 5 in B-flat major, second movement (Adagio), cellos, m. 51: “kurz gestrichen” at pp, while the first violins have “kurz” and the second violins “spiccato” in the same bar.

Related Terms