Ohne Crescendo

As Printed on a Score

Printed below or above a part, usually abbreviated “ohne cresc.”, where the music invites a swell the composer does not want — a rising line, a long note. It holds for that passage; a later cresc. or a new dynamic overrides it.

Abbreviations: ohne cresc.

How Composers Use It

A warning against instinct: players naturally grow louder on rising lines, long notes and approaches to climaxes. Ohne cresc. keeps the level flat, which can build suspense or keep a texture transparent. Mahler and Webern use it for quiet, sustained material. Pair it with the dynamic to hold (ppp ohne cresc.) and place it near the notes where the temptation arises.

Example

Mahler, Symphony No. 5, first movement, violas, m. 143: “ohne cresc.” together with “arco”, at ppp.

Related Terms