Con brio

With vigor, with spirit

"Con brio" is an Italian expression that translates to "with vigor" or "with spirit" in English, conveying the meanings of "energy" or "enthusiasm".

In music, "con brio" is an instruction used to guide performers to play with a lively and spirited quality, evoking a sense of briskness and vivacity.

In other words, when interpreting "con brio", performers should aim to infuse the music with a dynamic and enthusiastic energy, allowing the audience to experience a musical performance that is characterized by liveliness and spiritedness, reflecting the composer's intention for a vibrant and energetic rendition of the piece.

Example of Con brio

K. 183 Mozart Symphony No. 25 in G minor, I Allegro con brio

Tutor's Video (Mr Szeto)

Tutors

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Frankie Chan

California Baptist University (US), Hong Kong Baptist University

Master

Violin, Western Music Theory

David Yip

The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts

Bachelor (Current)

Violin

Anna Ngai

University Mozarteum Salzburg (AT)

Master

Piano, Piano Accompaniment, Western Music Theory

Athena Kwong

The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts

Master

Yangqin

Michael Lam

Royal Birmingham Conservatoire (UK), The Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music (HU), The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts

Master

Classical Vocal, Pop Singing, Musical, Ruan, Liuqin

Mr Billington

The Royal Northern College of Music (UK)

Master

Trumpet

Articles

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Common Practice Guide

After many years of being a student first and a teacher after, we often noticed that in our every day practice we can make small mistakes that may slow us down or might not bring the best out of our music. With these short tips we tried to go through some of them, hoping it will help students (and not only!) in their daily practice.

G Song by Terry Riley

As an iconic American composer, Terry Riley (born 1935) is always considered as a minimalist. However, this kind of thoughts would be ignoring part of his creativity. In fact, Riley added plenty elements in his compositions since 1970s, especially when he started collaborating with the Kronos Quartet. Riley’s composing style is very extensive, including improvisation, polyrhythm and jazz. He adopted classical elements, such as instrumentation, musical forms, structure and tonality. He also combined the elements from different periods to create unique musical textures. This research focuses on Terry Riley’s String Quartet, G Song. The research will be divided into two parts. The first part introduces Riley’s life and the background of G Song. The second part focuses on music analysis, including the musical structure “Two forms in one work”; The harmony “Unresolved Dissonance”; The rhythm “Metric Modulation”; The baroque “Canon”; The modern “Pointillism”. The purpose of this study is to discuss how Riley combined classicism and modernism into a work, and discuss why the statement “Terry Riley is considered as minimalist” would be ignoring part of his story.

Ludwig van Beethoven

Ludwig van Beethoven, German composer, the predominant musical figure during the transition between the Classical to Romantic eras. He occupies an unprecedented dominance in the history of Western music history, and has been widely regarded as the greatest, most influential and most popular musician who ever lived.

Beethoven's music inherited the artistic atmosphere of Haydn and Mozart, penetrated the desire for dignity, vented the anger tortured by fate, and demonstrated his determination to fight with fate.

Compared to other musicians, Beethoven is effectively to interact the philosophy of life with audience through music. Although he was not a romantic, he had become the object followed by other romantics.

As a musician, Beethoven suffered from ear diseases. However, he was unwilling to succumb to fate, vowing to take fate by the throat, and continue to complete his career. In the last ten years of his life, without hearing any sound, his compositions influenced the development of music for nearly two hundred years.

Musical Terms	Meaning
Affettuoso	Affectionate, expressive
Agitato	Agitated, restless
Animato	Animated, lively
Appassionato	Passionate, emotional
Brillante	Brilliant, shining
Brioso	Lively, vivacious
Bruscamente	Abruptly, suddenly
Buffo	Comic, humorous
Cantabile	Singing, song-like
Celere	Fast, quick
Colossale	Colossal, enormous
Comodo	Comfortable, convenient
Con amore	With love, affectionately
Con brio	With vigor, with spirit
Con forza	With force, with strength
Con fuoco	With fire, with passion
Con grazia	With grace, with elegance
Con moto	With motion, with movement
Con spirito	With spirit, with energy
Dolce	Sweet, gentle
Doloroso	Sorrowful, painful
Drammatico	Dramatic
Energico	Energetic, forceful
Espressivo	Expressive
Feroce	Fierce, ferocious
Festoso	Festive, joyful
Furioso	Furious, violent
Giocoso	Playful, joyful
Grandioso	Grand, majestic
Grazioso	Graceful
Lacrimoso	Tearful, weeping
Leggiero	Light
Maestoso	Majestic
Marcato	Emphasized, accentuated
Misterioso	Mysterious
Pesante	Heavy, weighty
Risoluto	Resolute, with determination
Scherzando	Jokingly, playful
Semplicemente	Simple, plainly
Slancio	Impulse, momentum
Solitario	Solitary, lonely
Sonore	Sonorous, resonant
Sostenuto	Sustained, steady
Sotto voce	Soft voice
Tranquillo	Calm, peaceful
Volante	Flying, light

Con brio

With vigor, with spirit

Example of Con brio

Common Expression Markings

Tutor's Video (Mr Szeto)

Frankie Chan

David Yip

Anna Ngai

Athena Kwong

Michael Lam

Mr Billington

Common Practice Guide

G Song by Terry Riley

Ludwig van Beethoven