prestissimo

IPA/presˈtɪs.ɪ.məʊ/
IPA/presˈtɪs.ɪ.moʊ/

prestissimo — adverb

1. a direction printed on a musical score telling the performer that the passage wh

1.adverb
Definition

a direction printed on a musical score telling the performer that the passage which follows must be played at the greatest speed physically possible.

Example

The composer wrote prestissimo at the start of the final movement of the sonata.

written marking on a score

Dario ignored the prestissimo marking and played the passage at a much slower tempo.

Common collocations
  • marked prestissimo
  • written prestissimo
  • prestissimo marking
Synonyms
Antonyms
  • lento

    Italian marking for very slow tempo; opposite end of the speed spectrum

  • adagio

    slow tempo marking; far slower than prestissimo

Usage Note

Refers only to the written tempo instruction on a musical score. To describe how music sounds during a live or recorded performance, use the second adverb sense.

Common Mistakes

The conductor asked for a prestissimo tempo.
The conductor asked the orchestra to play prestissimo.
Prestissimo already names the fastest tempo, so 'prestissimo tempo' is redundant.

2. at the fastest tempo a player can achieve, referring to the actual speed heard d

2.adverb
Definition

at the fastest tempo a player can achieve, referring to the actual speed heard during a live or recorded performance rather than to a written instruction on a score.

Example

The pianist played the last section prestissimo, amazing everyone in the concert hall.

describes actual performance speed

Shirin smiled after playing the passage prestissimo — she had never moved her fingers so fast.

Common collocations
  • played prestissimo
  • performed prestissimo
  • sung prestissimo
Synonyms
Antonyms
  • lentissimo

    Italian marking for extremely slow; the tempo opposite of prestissimo

Usage Note

Common in concert reviews, programme notes, and descriptions of actual performances. Unlike the first adverb sense, this one does not imply that the speed was requested in the written score.

prestissimo — adjective

prestissimo — noun

Word family

  • presto
    adverb
  • presto
    adjective
  • presto
    noun

Synonym discussion

Sense: adverb/1

These four Italian tempo markings form a speed ladder from fast to extremely fast. Allegro is the broadest term, meaning 'lively and brisk' — it covers most quick pieces and is the default fast tempo for Classical-era music. Vivace is slightly faster than allegro and carries a sense of 'lively' or 'vivacious' energy rather than pure speed. Presto means 'very fast' and represents a clear step up from allegro, often used in virtuosic final movements. Prestissimo is the superlative of presto and means 'as fast as possible' — the fastest tempo marking in standard use. In practice, a prestissimo section at quarter note = 200 BPM or faster would be nearly twice the speed of a typical allegro at 120 BPM. Composers reserve prestissimo for brief, explosive passages that demand the highest technical ability from performers.

prestissimo ↗prestoallegrovivace

Common collocations

Prepositions

  • at prestissimo

Etymology

ItalianEnglish

Prestissimo comes directly from Italian, where it is the superlative form of the adverb presto, meaning 'fast' or 'quickly'. The Italian suffix -issimo adds the idea of 'extremely' or 'to the highest degree', so prestissimo literally means 'most fast' or 'fastest of all'. Italian composers of the Baroque period, such as Corelli and Vivaldi, were among the first to use prestissimo as a tempo marking in their scores, and the term was later adopted into standard musical vocabulary across Europe.