Mit Schwung

As Printed on a Score

Printed above the staff as a heading, often with an adjective (“Mit feurigem Schwung”), or over a passage that should surge. It holds until another character or tempo word.

How Composers Use It

Schwung is momentum — the swing of a gesture carried through the bar line. The marking asks for buoyant, forward-leaning phrasing with lift on the upbeats, not mere speed or loudness. It is close to con slancio and to schwungvoll. Use it for waltz, march and anthem-like melodies; an adjective (feurig, leicht) tells the performer what kind of swing you mean.

Example

Brahms, Sechs Gesänge, Op. 3, “Lied aus dem Gedicht ‘Ivan’”, voice, m. 1: the song is headed “Mit feurigem Schwung”.

Related Terms