Solo

As Printed on a Score

Printed above a part where an exposed line begins: “Solo”, “1. Solo”, “I. solo”, “3. Solo”, the number naming the player. In a string section it means one player, the principal, until Tutti cancels it; in a wind part it tells a player who already has the line that it is exposed and should lead. In a concerto, Solo labels the soloist’s staff.

Also spelled: 1 solo, 2 solo

How Composers Use It

Solo passages showcase individual instruments. When writing a solo, consider the instrument’s best register, characteristic tone colors and technical capabilities, and thin the accompaniment so the soloist is heard without strain. In a string section, “Solo” means the principal alone — one player, not one desk — until Tutti returns; in a wind part, where each player already has a line, it marks the passage as exposed so the player leads.

Example

Dvořák, Symphony No. 9 (“From the New World”), second movement (Largo), English horn, m. 7: “Solo” over the entry of the movement’s famous melody, after the opening chords in the winds.

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