Poco allargando

As Printed on a Score

Printed above the staff at the phrase to be broadened — in songs often over the voice, with colla voce in the piano — and cancelled by a tempo or a new tempo word, usually soon after.

Abbreviations: poco allarg.

How Composers Use It

Allargando widens the music — slower and fuller at once — and poco keeps the widening slight, enough to give a peak note or a cadence weight without losing momentum. Early 20th-century English song composers (Butterworth, Warlock, Quilter) use it often at the climax of a line. Make sure the accompaniment follows: colla voce or matching markings in every part keep the broadening together.

Example

Butterworth, Six Songs from “A Shropshire Lad”, “The lads in their hundreds”, voice, m. 40: “poco allargando”, with “colla voce” printed in the piano part.

Related Terms