Sostenuto

Sostenuto, abbreviated sost., is Italian for ‘sustained’. As a musical direction it has two related meanings: as a tempo modifier it slows the music slightly, suggesting a more deliberate pace; as a stylistic direction it asks the performer to hold each note to its full written value, with rich connection between notes.

The two senses often blur together. A passage marked sostenuto typically slows a touch and at the same time becomes more legato and full-toned. The implication is sustaining tone, sustaining tempo, sustaining the emotional intensity of the line.

Sostenuto is also the name of one of the pedals on a grand piano (the middle pedal), which sustains only the notes already depressed when the pedal is engaged. The mechanism allows the pianist to sustain selected pitches while playing other notes staccato — a useful effect for late-Romantic and modern repertoire.

Italian, past participle of sostenere (‘to sustain, support’), from Latin sustinere.

Hold notes for their full written value, no shorter. On strings, draw the bow with a full and steady arm. On piano, listen for the moment one note ends and the next begins — there should be no gap. Tempo can ease slightly to support the sustained character.