Plötzlich

As Printed on a Score

Printed above the staff at the exact point of change, usually with the new state named — Plötzlich schneller, plötzlich wieder bedeutend langsamer, (Plötzlich anhaltend). It applies from that note on, and the new tempo holds until the next tempo word, as with subito.

Also spelled: ploetzlich

How Composers Use It

The German subito, and one of Mahler’s favourite dramatic switches: the music turns without preparation. It only works if the preceding bars do not slow or speed toward it, so avoid printing a ritardando into a plötzlich. Pair it with a precise destination — a tempo word or metronome mark — so the new speed is set at once, not found gradually.

Example

Mahler, Symphony No. 5, first movement (Trauermarsch), m. 155: “Plötzlich schneller. Leidenschaftlich. Wild.” — three terse directions that break the measured march tempo at a stroke.

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