staccato

Staccato is a musical articulation that indicates a note or group of notes should be played in a detached, separated manner with a short, crisp attack and release. The term comes from the Italian staccare, meaning to detach.

Notation commonly uses a dot placed above or below the note head. A staccatissimo marking, rendered as a wedge or small triangle, calls for an even shorter, more abrupt separation. A related but softer effect is mezzo-staccato (also called portato), typically shown by notes under a slur with staccato marks or with tenuto lines, signaling a lightly detached, moderately short feel within a slur.

Performance and interpretation vary by instrument. On keyboard instruments, staccato is achieved by a quick release of the key, and the exact length depends on tempo and style; pedals may be used sparingly to maintain, or avoid, overlap between notes. On strings, detaché bowing or short, separated notes achieves a similar effect. Wind and brass players use tonguing to create the crisp onset, followed by a short sustain. In vocal music, staccato describes brief, separated syllables or notes without a prolonged resonance.

Historically, staccato has been a common feature in many eras of Western classical music, with the dot becoming a standard articulation sign in the Baroque, Classical, and Romantic periods, and continuing in modern styles. It functions as a contrast to legato, where notes are connected smoothly, and can be combined with other marks to convey varied expressive nuances.