Leicht

As Printed on a Score

Printed above the staff: capitalised when it heads a piece or section (“Leicht und zart”), lower-case when it colours a phrase already under way. It often joins a tempo word — Leicht bewegt, leicht und bewegt — and stays in force until the next character word replaces it; nothing formally cancels it.

How Composers Use It

The German counterpart of leggiero: a light touch and an unweighted, airy delivery, not necessarily a faster tempo. Because the word can describe touch or motion, pair it with a tempo word when speed matters (Leicht bewegt), and keep the dynamic modest — leicht under an f invites a contradiction. Schumann makes it the whole character of a piece; Webern uses it for a single phrase inside a quiet song.

Example

Schumann, Arabeske in C major, Op. 18, m. 1: “Leicht und zart” heads the piece, beside its metronome mark and a pp.

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