DE nicht schnell tempo common Support my free tools
How is nicht schnell played?
Hold the tempo back from becoming fast. The likely result is moderate or restrained motion—exactly the baseline’s distinction, “not necessarily slow, just kept off a fast pace”—but metre, note values, character words and any metronome mark determine the actual speed. Unlike nicht zu schnell, the phrase does not explicitly say that a quick or animated tempo should be retained below an upper limit; it simply rules out fastness. Schoenberg’s Nicht schnell, aber gesangvoll also shows that singing character is a separate layer. Maintain the non-fast pace until another tempo instruction.
How does nicht schnell sound?
Moderate or restrained motion — not necessarily slow, just kept off a fast pace.
Nicht schnell, not fast, does the same job as nicht zu schnell in a plainer form: it restrains a tempo relative to whatever's already happening around it, rather than fixing one of its own.
In context
Duden defines schnell through high tempo or speed, so nicht schnell literally removes that category without supplying a replacement BPM. Clara Schumann uses Nicht schnell as a complete song heading, while Schoenberg writes Nicht schnell, aber gesangvoll, separating tempo restraint from singing character. These score examples support the baseline’s moderate or restrained result and its warning not to translate the phrase automatically as “slow.” No stable general abbreviation was established, so the complete wording remains.
Equivalent terms
- FR pas vite
- EN not fast
- DA ikke hurtigt