Nicht eilen

As Printed on a Score

Printed above the staff, often with an exclamation mark or in parentheses, at a point where players tend to rush — a crescendo, a return to Tempo I, a fast figure; it applies from that point until the music settles. Italian equivalents such as non accel. sometimes stand beside it.

How Composers Use It

A warning against hurrying, one of Mahler’s most frequent directions. Use it where the music’s energy invites acceleration but the tempo must hold steady — before a climax, during a crescendo, or as an arrival tempo returns. It assumes a tempo already set, so it needs no restoring marking afterwards.

Example

Mahler, Symphony No. 5, third movement (Scherzo), m. 448: “Tempo I.” with “(Nicht eilen!)” — the return to the main tempo carries a warning not to overshoot it.

Related Terms