Mezzo forte

As Printed on a Score

Printed below the staff as mf (above it in vocal parts), rarely as words. It lasts until the next dynamic or hairpin. In Classical scores forte and piano do most of the work, so mf is less common there; from the 19th century on it is a routine level, often paired with espressivo, a solo marking or a word such as hervortretend to set a line apart.

Abbreviations: mf

How Composers Use It

mf is the comfortable level at which most instruments speak fully without strain, which makes it a good working level for accompaniment and for lines you want present but not dominant. Some players assume mf where no dynamic is printed, but that is a convention, not a rule: state the opening dynamic. Use an explicit mf to re-establish this level after louder or softer passages.

Example

Bruckner, Symphony No. 5 in B-flat major, first movement, second violins, m. 83: “hervortretend” (standing out) at mf, as the tempo eases to “Etwas mehr langsam” — prominence asked for by a word rather than a louder dynamic.

Related Terms