Possibile

As Printed on a Score

Printed at the end of a superlative direction (“il più forte possibile”, “il più presto possibile”, or Tchaikovsky’s “forte possibile”) at the point where the extreme should be reached. It lasts until a new dynamic or tempo word replaces it.

How Composers Use It

Possibile turns a comparative into an absolute: il più forte possibile asks for the loudest sound the player can make, not merely louder. It is most effective at a single climax, where ff or fff seems inadequate; Chopin places it at the peak of the First Ballade, just before the coda. Overuse empties it: if every peak is possibile, none is.

Example

Chopin, Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23, m. 206: “il più forte possibile”, two bars before the coda’s “Presto con fuoco.”

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