Ritardando
Ritardando means gradually slowing the pulse. The distance in time from one beat to the next grows over the marked span.
- rit.
- gradual slowing
- often before a cadence
How do you read rit. in a score?
Rit. is the usual abbreviation. It may start at one note and continue to a line ending or a new tempo. If a four-beat bar is marked ritardando, it still has four written beats; you spend progressively more time moving through them.
Is it the same as playing fewer notes?
No. A half note instead of two quarters changes the number of attacks but need not slow the beat. With ritardando, even a repeating pattern of identical quarter notes spreads out in clock time. Count the pulses aloud to hear the difference.
How do you resume afterward?
An a tempo marking restores the earlier pace. A new BPM marking sets a new one. If neither appears, follow the musical phrase and the conductor or ensemble. A small ritardando near a cadence may end with the piece rather than requiring any restart.