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Literally "stolen time." Flexible tempo where some notes are slightly lengthened while others are shortened, maintaining the overall pulse.
When writing tempo rubato, you are giving the performer permission to bend time expressively. In Classical usage (Chopin), the left hand keeps strict time while the right hand "steals." In Romantic usage, the whole texture flexes. Mark it where melodic expression demands temporal freedom.
Chopin's Nocturnes throughout — Chopin's rubato allows the right-hand melody to float freely over a steady left-hand accompaniment, creating the illusion of spontaneous expression.
Rubato is one of 228 terms in the Gradus musical dictionary, where every definition is written around how composers actually use the word.
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