A Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Andantino

by Ebenezer Prout

ANDANTINO (Ital.). The diminutive of Andante (q. v.). As 'andante' means literally 'going,' its diminutive must mean 'rather going,' i. e. not going quite so fast; and properly 'andantino' designates a somewhat slower time than andante. Some modern composers however, forgetting the original meaning of the word, and thinking of andante as equivalent with 'slow,' use andantino for 'rather slow,' i. e. somewhat quicker. In which sense the word is intended can only be determined by the character of the music itself. No more striking proof of the uncertainty which prevails in the use of these time-indications can be given than is to be found in the fact that three movements in Mendelssohn's 'Elijah' the first of which, 'If with all your hearts,' is marked 'andante con moto,' the second, 'The Lord hath exalted thee,' merely 'andante,' and the third, 'O rest in the Lord,' 'andantino,' are all in exactly the same time, the metronome indication being in each case = 72. [App. p.522 "See Beethoven's opinion as to the meaning of the term, in Thayer, iii. 241."]

[ E. P. ]