Articulation and Phrasing
Key articulation marks and phrasing symbols that shape how each note begins and ends.
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Questions Covered in This Set
11 cards to master
What does a dot directly above or below a notehead mean?
Staccato — play the note short and separated, sounding roughly half its written value with silence after.
What does a slur indicate?
A curved line joining notes of different pitches, meaning legato: connect them smoothly with no gap or re-articulation.
How do you tell a slur from a tie?
Same pitch = tie (one merged, longer note); different pitches = slur (smoothly connected separate notes).
What does tenuto (a short horizontal dash) mean?
Hold the note its full value — broad and sustained with a bit of weight, not hit hard.
What does an accent (>) ask for?
Attack the note more strongly than its neighbors — louder at the beginning, then relaxing.
What is marcato (^)?
An upward wedge or 'roof' above the note meaning strong and slightly separated — more emphatic than a plain accent.
What does staccatissimo (▼) mean?
Even shorter and drier than staccato.
What is sforzando (sfz/sf)?
A text marking for a single sudden forced note, even inside a quiet passage.
What is a phrase mark?
A long curved line over a whole melodic idea (often 4–8 bars) outlining a musical sentence; play toward its middle, then relax and breathe at the end.
What does cantabile mean?
'Singingly' — play smoothly and lyrically, like a singing voice.
What do a dot plus a dash together mean?
Portato ('lifted') — short but weighty.
