Warm

As Printed on a Score

Printed above the staff over a phrase, often in parentheses or joined with aber (“Schlicht, aber warm”); bilingual editions set caloroso or con calore beside it. It lasts until another character word.

How Composers Use It

Warm asks for a rich, generous tone: fuller vibrato, more bow or breath, phrases that glow rather than shine. It is a tone-colour word more than a dynamic, so it works at p as well as f. Mahler and Schoenberg use it to soften a plain or cool context without changing the tempo. Do not use it as a synonym for slower.

Example

Schoenberg, Das Buch der hängenden Gärten, Op. 15, “Als Neuling trat ich ein in dein Gehege”, voice, m. 8: “(warm)”, a bar after “etwas breit”.

Related Terms