Triangolo

As Printed on a Score

Labels the triangle line (Triangolo; Trgl., Triang. or Tri. later), on a single line. A roll is written as tremolo or tr. — the beater rattling inside one corner — and single strokes ring on unless the part asks for them to be damped.

Abbreviations: Trgl., Triang., Tri.

Also spelled: Triangoli

How Composers Use It

Small as it is, the triangle cuts through the full orchestra with a high, bright ring of no definite pitch, so a single stroke can mark a downbeat or crown a climax. Classical composers used it in ‘Turkish’ music, as in the march of Beethoven’s Ninth finale; Liszt’s First Piano Concerto famously gives it a solo. Vary the beater — thin for delicacy, heavy for brilliance — and keep it rare enough to stay special.

Example

Dvořák, Symphony No. 9 (“From the New World”), third movement (Scherzo), staff label: “Triangolo”, shortened to “Trgl.” on later systems.

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