Tempo Markings

Poco

Pronounced POH-koh

Definition

Poco is an Italian modifier meaning 'a little'. It softens the word beside it: poco rit. slows down slightly, poco cresc. grows a little louder, poco più mosso is a little faster.

Poco means "little" or "a little", and un poco means "a little" too. Like molto, it does not stand alone: it scales down the instruction beside it.

Two identical three-bar treble-clef melodies in 4/4 in quarter notes, ending on a half-note C. Both are marked Andante above bar 1; above bar 2 the first says Più mosso and the second Poco più mosso. — The same three bars marked *Andante* (played at ♩ = 84). At bar 2, *Più mosso* jumps to ♩ = 120; *Poco più mosso* moves on only a little, to ♩ = 98.

Poco in real markings

Tempo changes: poco rit. (slow down slightly), poco accel., poco più mosso (a little faster), poco meno mosso (a little slower).
Dynamics: poco cresc., poco dim., poco f (moderately loud, not a full forte).
Tempo words: Beethoven's Für Elise is marked Poco moto, "with a little motion" (see our Für Elise study). His Ninth Symphony opens Allegro ma non troppo, un poco maestoso: fast, not too fast, a little majestic.
Combined: Burgmüller's La Candeur has dolce e poco rit., sweetly and slowing a little (see our La Candeur study).

Poco and poco a poco

Poco alone means a small amount. Poco a poco, "little by little", means gradually: poco a poco cresc. is a long, slow build, which can end up very loud. Do not confuse "a little" with "little by little".

Playing poco

A poco change should be noticeable but modest. A poco rit. that slows as much as a full ritardando loses the composer's distinction; one that slows so little that nobody notices is not there at all. Try recording yourself: if a listener can hear the change without it drawing attention to itself, you have found poco.

Common questions

What does poco rit. mean?

Slow down a little: a gentle, gradual ritardando, noticeably less than a plain rit. and much less than molto rit.