Sans hâte

As Printed on a Score

Printed above the staff, usually in the voice part, at a passage that might be hurried — often near a cadence or before a ritardando. It applies to that passage and lapses when a new tempo word arrives.

Also spelled: sans hate

How Composers Use It

Without haste: the French senza fretta. It asks for unhurried delivery without slowing the tempo, a fine distinction worth making when words or ornaments might be rushed. In “Deux ancolies” Lili Boulanger places it just before a molto rit. and a return to Tempo I, so the phrase settles before the slowing begins.

Example

Lili Boulanger, Clairières dans le ciel, “Deux ancolies”, voice, m. 34: “sans hâte”, with “adouci” in the same bar; “molto rit.” follows, then “Tempo I.” at m. 36.

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