Temps de marche

As Printed on a Score

Printed above the first staff as a heading at the start of a piece or section, in place of a conventional tempo word. It governs until a new tempo heading appears.

How Composers Use It

It sets tempo and character at once: a steady march pulse at walking pace, usually in duple time. Satie uses it as the only heading of a cabaret song, in keeping with his taste for plain-spoken markings. The French counterpart of Tempo di marcia, it leaves the exact speed to convention, so add a metronome mark if the march should be brisk or stately.

Example

Satie, La Diva de l’Empire, voice, m. 1: “Temps de marche”, the song’s heading.

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