anticipando

Anticipando is a term found in Romance-language contexts, most notably as the gerund or present participle form of the verbs anticipar in Spanish and anticipare in Italian, both meaning “to anticipate.” The root comes from Latin ante- “before” and capere “to take.” The spelling is identical in Spanish and Italian, though pronunciation differs between languages.

In everyday usage, anticipando means “anticipating” and is used to describe actions that are foreseen or done in advance. In Spanish, it forms part of verb phrases and can appear in non-finite clauses. In Italian, it serves similarly as a present participle in non-finite constructions. The term appears in linguistic descriptions as well as in prose and dialogue to express forward-looking action.

In music notation, anticipando is an Italian instruction that indicates a melodic note or a tone of the following harmony should be played earlier than the beat. This creates an anticipation, a type of non-chord tone that resolves when the new harmony is reached. The technique is commonly discussed in music theory under the concept of anticipation (anticipazione), and is used to achieve forward momentum or color within a musical phrase.

See also: anticipation, anticipate, anticipar (Spanish), anticipare (Italian).