Articulation & Ornaments

Turn

Definition

A turn is an ornament of four notes that circle the written note: the note above, the written note, the note below, and the written note again. Its sign looks like a sideways S.

A turn is an ornament that winds around the written note: the note above, the written note, the note below, and back to the written note. Its sign looks like a letter S lying on its side. Italian musicians call it a gruppetto ("little group"), German musicians a Doppelschlag.

Where the sign is printed changes when the turn happens.

Turn over the note

When the sign sits directly above the note, the turn starts on the beat: three quick notes (above, main, below), then the written note for the rest of its value.

Two treble-clef staves in 2/4. The first has a quarter note C5, a quarter note E5 with a turn sign above it, then a half note D5. The second has C5, then a sixteenth-note triplet F5, E5, D5 and an eighth note E5, then the half note D5. — Left: a turn sign directly over E. Right: how it is played: F–E–D as a quick triplet on the beat, then the written E for the rest of the beat, before the music moves on to D.

Turn between two notes

When the sign is printed a little to the right of the note, between it and the next one, play the written note first. Near its end, the four notes of the turn lead smoothly into the next note.

Two treble-clef staves in 2/4. The first has a quarter note C5, a quarter note E5 followed by a turn sign, then a half note F5. The second has C5, then an eighth note E5 followed by thirty-second notes F5, E5, D5, E5, then the half note F5. — Left: the turn sign printed after E, between E and F. Right: how it is played: E first, then F–E–D–E as quick notes in the second half of the beat, leading into F.

Both readings have stayed much the same from the Baroque period to today, though the exact rhythm is flexible: quick and crisp in lively music, broader and more singing in slow music, where the turn can take up more of the beat.

The inverted turn

A turn sign drawn upside down, or crossed by a short vertical line, is an inverted turn: it starts below instead of above (below, main, above, main).

Accidentals with a turn

The upper and lower notes follow the key signature. A small accidental above the sign changes the upper note; one below the sign changes the lower note. A raised lower note, only a half step below the main note, is very common, because it makes the turn pull back to the main note more strongly.

Hear both kinds in Ornaments through the eras, and write them out in Write out the ornaments.

Common questions

How do you play a turn in music?

Play the note above, the written note, the note below and the written note again. If the sign is over the note, start the turn on the beat; if it is printed after the note, play the written note first and put the turn at its end.