This chapter is devoted entirely to the transcriptionand translation of key passages relating to thetempo of time signatures. The type of informationsought out in these source excerpts is primarily theverbal descriptions directly related to tempo, forexample, words such as “fast,” “faster,” “slow,”“slower” etc. In order to provide a greater contextfor a specific meter, other information thatindirectly relates to the speed of a time signatureis also included, e.g., the character associatedwith a certain speed (weighty, flowing, spirited),the type of composition commonly associated with atime signature (fugues, minuets, etc.), and howcommonly and in what time period it was used. Ingeneral, matters related to metric division (i.e.,conducting patterns, metric feet, etc.) have notbeen included in the source excerpts below, exceptwhen directly linked to speed. I refer the reader tochapter 5 for a treatment of this topic.

The transcriptions and translations are organizedaccording to time signature, and within each timesignature category, the excerpts are organizedchronologically.

Some authors gave descriptions of speed for some timesignatures, but not for others: when no tempo dataare given—even if the signatures were described forother reasons—the discussion is not entered into thefollowing list.

The following authors are represented: MichaelPraetorius, Nicolaus Gengenbach, Wolfgang Hase,Georg Falck, Giovanni Giacomo Carissimi, WolfgangCaspar Printz, Daniel Merck, Georg Muffat, FriedrichErhard Niedt, Johann Samuel Beyer, Martin HeinrichFuhrmann, Johann Mattheson, Joseph F. B. C. Maier,Johann Joachim Quantz, Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg,Leopold Mozart, Iganz F. X. Kürzinger, Johann AdolphScheibe, Johann Philipp Kirnberger, and ChristianKalkbrenner.

In general, while ¢ is a fast meter, its Affekt is serious. What ismore, the tactus speed of this meter was describedas fast in the beginning of the Baroque, but theperceived speed (which influenced its Affekt) was described asslow at the end of the Baroque.

PRAETORIUS (1619):

Celerior, MotectarumFaster, Motets