Legato
No gap between notes — one unbroken line
Related
Legato joins notes with no gap, heard as one continuous line, marked by a slur. It is not a glissando: pitches still change step by step, but no silence appears at the change.
On strings it is the connection between bows and fingers, on winds the control of breath and tongue, on the piano the arrival of the next key before the previous sound dies. The difficulty is not "never stopping" but staying connected while each note keeps its outline — otherwise the line smears.
Read deeper → Articulation Marks
Sources
- 连奏的演奏含义与连音线用法，参 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "Articulation" 与通行乐理教材；本文为原创表述
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