Appoggiatura
A leaning note that takes time from the principal note
Related
An appoggiatura is an ornament that leans into the principal note from above or below: it sounds first, then resolves to the main note. In Baroque and Classical practice the long appoggiatura takes part of the principal note's value, rather than flashing past.
It differs from a passing tone: a passing tone connects two chord tones, while an appoggiatura stresses a dissonance and then resolves it. The usual mistake is to make it as short as possible — the weight of a long appoggiatura is exactly where its expression lies; play it as a tiny grace note and the harmonic tension disappears.
Read deeper → non-chord tone
Sources
- 倚音的时值规则与历史用法，参 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "Appoggiatura"；本文为原创表述
Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.