Spegnendo

As Printed on a Score

Printed below the staff over the bars where the sound dies away, often at the close of a phrase or piece; also found as spegnendosi. The process ends in silence or at the next dynamic.

Also spelled: spegnendosi

How Composers Use It

Extinguishing, as of a flame: a fade that implies the tone itself dimming, not just the level dropping. It belongs with morendo and perdendosi as a poetic fade-out; choose it for the image. Give it enough bars, and say whether the tempo should relax too, since players often slow with a fade.

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