Bebung
Encyclopedia
Bebung is a type of vibrato
executed on the clavichord
.
When a clavichord key is pressed, a small metal tangent strikes a string and remains in contact with it for as long as the key is held down. By applying a rocking pressure up and down the key with the finger, a performer can slightly alter the vibrating length of the string itself, producing a vibrato quality known as Bebung. While the vibrato on fretless string instruments such as the violin typically oscillates in pitch
both above and below the nominal note, clavichord Bebung can only produce pitches above the note.
Bebung was often not explicitly indicated in sheet music
; the assumption was that, like other ornaments
, Bebung was to be applied at the performer's discretion. Where Bebung is indicated, it appears as a series of dots written above or below a note, with the number of dots indicating the number of movements of the finger.
Vibrato
Vibrato is a musical effect consisting of a regular, pulsating change of pitch. It is used to add expression to vocal and instrumental music. Vibrato is typically characterised in terms of two factors: the amount of pitch variation and the speed with which the pitch is varied .-Vibrato and...
executed on the clavichord
Clavichord
The clavichord is a European stringed keyboard instrument known from the late Medieval, through the Renaissance, Baroque and Classical eras. Historically, it was widely used as a practice instrument and as an aid to composition, not being loud enough for larger performances. The clavichord produces...
.
When a clavichord key is pressed, a small metal tangent strikes a string and remains in contact with it for as long as the key is held down. By applying a rocking pressure up and down the key with the finger, a performer can slightly alter the vibrating length of the string itself, producing a vibrato quality known as Bebung. While the vibrato on fretless string instruments such as the violin typically oscillates in pitch
Pitch (music)
Pitch is an auditory perceptual property that allows the ordering of sounds on a frequency-related scale.Pitches are compared as "higher" and "lower" in the sense associated with musical melodies,...
both above and below the nominal note, clavichord Bebung can only produce pitches above the note.
Bebung was often not explicitly indicated in sheet music
Sheet music
Sheet music is a hand-written or printed form of music notation that uses modern musical symbols; like its analogs—books, pamphlets, etc.—the medium of sheet music typically is paper , although the access to musical notation in recent years includes also presentation on computer screens...
; the assumption was that, like other ornaments
Ornament (music)
In music, ornaments or embellishments are musical flourishes that are not necessary to carry the overall line of the melody , but serve instead to decorate or "ornament" that line. Many ornaments are performed as "fast notes" around a central note...
, Bebung was to be applied at the performer's discretion. Where Bebung is indicated, it appears as a series of dots written above or below a note, with the number of dots indicating the number of movements of the finger.