Martellato

Martellato is Italian for ‘hammered’. As a performance direction it instructs the performer to attack each note sharply and percussively, as if striking with a hammer. The effect is forceful, percussive, and emphatic.

On bowed strings, martellato is a specific bow technique: the bow is pressed firmly into the string at the start of the stroke, producing a sharp, accented attack, then released to allow the note to sound. The result is a strongly accented, slightly detached note with a percussive quality.

On piano, martellato implies a hammered touch — full arm weight, sharp attack, possibly with the keys struck rather than pressed. The marking is more common in 19th and 20th-century piano music (Liszt, Bartók, Prokofiev) and in violin writing.

Italian, past participle of martellare (‘to hammer’), from martello (‘hammer’), itself from Latin martulus.

Engage full physical commitment. The hammer-like character requires more than a strong attack; the entire body should support the percussive force. On strings, plant the bow firmly before drawing.