In this concise essay, I will explore the first appearance of tempo marking and the development of the notion of Allegro in the 17 and 18th centuries.
The first appearance of tempo marking
One of the first known composers to use tempo marking was Adriano Banchieri (c.1567-1634), an Italian composer, theorist, organist, dramatist, teacher, organiser of liturgical music of his church, and founder of the "Accademia dei Floridi" in Bologna.
Tempo marking such as Adagio, Allegro, Presto and Veloce can be found in the second edition of his treatise L'Organo suonarino (1611).
Allegro in the 18th century
Sébastien de Brossard (1655–1730) was a French music theorist, composer and collector of musical manuscripts and music treatises. Brossard is well known for his "Dictionnaire de musique", the first music dictionary written in French.
We can find the definition of the term "allegro" from two different editions: the first edition, published in Paris in 1703, and the last edition, published in London in 1769 with appendix from Jean-Jacques Rousseau.
First edition (1703)
"well animated and often comes quickly & lightly, but also some be a moderate movement, although cheerful, and lively"
New edition (1769)
"Allegro, is used to signify that the music ought to be performed in a brisk, lively, gay (happy) and pleasant manner, yet without hurry and precipitation, and quicker than any except Presto"
"The usual fix definitions succeed each other in the following order, Grave, Adagio, Largo, Vivace, Allegro, and Presto"
"It is to be observed that the movements of the same name as Adagio, or Allegro are swifter in triple than in common time; 6/8, 6/4, 9/8, 12/8 are most commonly Allegro"
The definition of Allegro in the first edition is still mood orientated and vague in terms of speed/tempo.
In an effort to optimize the expression of a specific mood or feeling expressed in words, in this case allegro (happy or cheerful), with music, composers would have tried different speed by trial and error. It is not so difficult to imagine that, with time, a collective notion of tempo, specific to a mood took shape.
For example, in the new edition, which was published 56 years later, gives us much clearer definition of Allegro in terms of speed, which is "faster than any except Presto.
We have to be aware of the fact that, sometimes, meters themselves contained the concept of a speed or tempo in this period.
By observing the development of tempo and Allegro, we can see that tempo marking is more than just a simple indication of speed because the emotion contained in music is what dictates an suitable tempo or speed. Furthermore, this ambiguous, relative, and rather objective nature of tempo within the general consensus of each period, gives us an additional layer of imagination and complexity that revives music.
