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WHAT’S THE<br />
NEED FOR SPEED?<br />
IN MUSIC, WE USE ITALIAN NAMES TO TELL US HOW FAST,<br />
OR SLOW, TO PLAY. THIS IS CALLED THE TEMPO.<br />
Here are some of those names – or tempo<br />
markings – used in classical music:<br />
SLOWER<br />
FASTER<br />
LARGO<br />
(40-60 BPM)<br />
ADAGIO<br />
(66-76 BPM)<br />
ADANTE<br />
(76-108 BPM)<br />
ALLEGRO<br />
(120-168 BPM)<br />
VIVACE<br />
(168-176 BPM)<br />
PRESTO<br />
(168-200 BPM)<br />
You will notice that there is a number after each tempo and<br />
the letters BPM. This stands for Beats Per Minute. You<br />
can use the second hand of a clock, or a watch, to roughly<br />
work out how fast the speeds are.<br />
60 BPM is 60 beats per minute – or one beat per second.<br />
Allegro is 120 beats per minute – or two beats per second.<br />
Presto is around three beats per second.<br />
And so on!<br />
Look at the tempo markings for the Violin Concerto, or<br />
Symphony No.9 and see if you can tap your foot in time<br />
with the tempo for each piece.<br />
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