Mordent

The mordent is an ornament consisting of a rapid alternation between a written note, the note immediately below it (or above, in the inverted form), and a return to the principal note. The notation is a small wavy line — sometimes with a vertical slash through it (lower mordent) or without (upper mordent).

The ‘standard’ mordent (lower mordent) — written with a vertical slash through the wavy line — proceeds: principal — lower auxiliary — principal. The ‘inverted’ or ‘upper’ mordent — without the slash — proceeds: principal — upper auxiliary — principal. The terminology varies by tradition and era.

The mordent is particularly common in Baroque music, where keyboard players use it constantly to ornament melodic lines. Bach’s keyboard works are full of mordents; performers adapt their execution to the tempo and character of the music.

Italian mordente (‘biting’), present participle of mordere (‘to bite’).

Execute the mordent quickly — three notes in rapid succession. Keep it light; the mordent is decorative, not heavy. The slash distinguishes lower (standard) from upper (inverted) mordent.