Träumerisch

As Printed on a Score

A heading or passage word printed above the staff, often joined to a calm or tempo word (“Träumerisch, ruhig”). It describes the mood of a whole song or section rather than a single note, and stays in force until another character word.

Also spelled: traeumerisch

How Composers Use It

Träumerisch asks for a veiled, inward sound: soft dynamics, gently blurred phrasing, flexible time that never feels driven. It is the mood of Schumann’s Träumerei, though that title is not itself a marking. Combine it with ruhig or langsam to fix the pace, and avoid crisp articulation marks inside a dreamy passage unless you want a deliberate contrast.

Example

Cornelius, Sechs Lieder, Op. 1, “Nachts”, voice, m. 1: the song is headed “Träumerisch, ruhig”, at p.