In music, ''perpetuum mobile'' (English pronunciation /pərˌpɛtjʊəm ˈmoʊbɪleɪ/, /ˈmoʊbɪli/; Latin, literally, "perpetual motion"), ''moto perpetuo'' (

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

), ''mouvement perpétuel'' ( French), ''movimento perpétuo'' ( Portuguese) ''movimiento perpetuo'' ( Spanish), is a term used to describe a rapidly executed and persistently maintained figuration, usually of notes of equal length. Over time it has taken on two distinct applications: first, as describing entire musical compositions or passages within them that are characterised by a continuous stream of notes, usually but not always at a rapid

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...

; and second, as describing entire compositions, or extended passages within them that are meant to be played in a repetitious fashion, often an indefinite number of times.

Types of ''perpetuum mobile'' composition

As a distinct composition, ''perpetuum mobile'' can be defined as one in which part or most of the piece is intended to be repeated an often unspecified number of times, without the "motion" of the melody being halted when a repeat begins. Canons are often intended to be performed in a ''moto perpetuo'' fashion, and can thus be called ''canon perpetuus''. In some cases the repeats of a "perpetuum mobile" piece are at a different pitch, a

modulation Signal modulation is the process of varying one or more properties of a periodic waveform in electronics and telecommunication for the purpose of transmitting information. The process encodes information in form of the modulation or message ...

or a

chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural, or simply changes) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from ...

occurs during the repeatable part. Some of the ''riddle canons'' of

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety of instruments and forms, including the or ...

's are examples of this particular kind of ''perpetuum mobile''/''canon perpetuus''. ''Perpetuum mobile'' as a

genre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other fo ...

of separate musical compositions was at the height of its popularity by the end of the 19th century. Such pieces would often be performed as virtuoso encores, in some cases increasing the tempo along the repeats.

Examples

''Perpetuum mobile'' pieces of both kinds include:

Baroque period

* The ''Preludio'' from

's Partita for Violin No. 3 consists almost entirely of sixteenth notes.

Classical period

* The finale of

Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( ; ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

's String Quartet No. 53 in D major ("The Lark"), Op. 64, No. 5 * The finale of

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

's 22nd piano sonata, and large segments of the finales of his Tempest and Appassionata sonatas (although these are not very fast; the ''Tempest'' and the 22nd sonata are only marked ''Allegretto'', and the ''Appassionata'' is marked ''Allegro ma non troppo'') * The second of

Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...

's ''Impromptus'', D. 899 * The fourth of Franz Schubert's ''moments musicaux'' (likewise not very fast, marked ''Moderato'')

Romantic period

* The finale of

Carl Maria von Weber Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber (5 June 1826) was a German composer, conductor, virtuoso pianist, guitarist, and Music criticism, critic in the early Romantic music, Romantic period. Best known for List of operas by Carl Maria von Weber, h ...

's Piano Sonata No. 1 * Charles-Valentin Alkan's '' Le chemin de fer'', op. 27, for piano *

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic music, Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions inc ...

's ''Perpetuum mobile'', op. 119, for piano * Ottokar Novacek's ''Perpetuum Mobile'', for violin and piano * Nicolò Paganini's ''Moto perpetuo'' Op. 11 (No. 6) for violin *

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov. At the time, his name was spelled , which he romanized as Nicolas Rimsky-Korsakow; the BGN/PCGN transliteration of Russian is used for his name here; ALA-LC system: , ISO 9 system: .. (18 March 1844 – 2 ...

's '' Flight of the Bumblebee'', an interlude for his opera '' The Tale of Tsar Saltan'' *

Johann Strauss II Johann Baptist Strauss II (; ; 25 October 1825 – 3 June 1899), also known as Johann Strauss Jr., the Younger or the Son (), was an List of Austrian composers, Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas as well ...

's ''Perpetuum Mobile: musikalischer Scherz'' for orchestra *

Robert Schumann Robert Schumann (; ; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and music critic of the early Romantic music, Romantic era. He composed in all the main musical genres of the time, writing for solo piano, voice and piano, chamber ...

's ''Hasche-Mann'' from

Kinderszenen ' (, "Scenes from Childhood"), Opus number, Op. 15, by Robert Schumann, is a set of thirteen pieces of music for piano written in 1838. History and description Schumann wrote 30 movements for this work but chose 13 for the final version. T ...

Bedřich Smetana Bedřich Smetana ( ; ; 2 March 1824 – 12 May 1884) was a Czech composer who pioneered the development of a musical style that became closely identified with his people's aspirations to a cultural and political "revival". He has been regarded ...

's Album Leaf No.3 from ''Six Album Leaves'' Op. 2 * Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1, third movement * Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6, third movement

20th century

* ''Mouvement'' (from ''Images, Set 1''), a 1905 piano composition by

Claude Debussy Achille Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influe ...

* Perpetuum Mobile (from ''Die allerersten Vortragsstueckchen des jungen Cellisten'' Op.19) by (1912) * The second movement of

Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''. , group=n ( – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor who l ...

's ''Piano Concerto No. 2'' (1912–1913) * ''Trois Mouvements perpétuels'', a 1918 piano composition by

Francis Poulenc Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc (; 7 January 189930 January 1963) was a French composer and pianist. His compositions include mélodie, songs, solo piano works, chamber music, choral pieces, operas, ballets, and orchestral concert music. Among th ...

* The end of the opera '' Wozzeck'', Act III Scene 5, by

Alban Berg Alban Maria Johannes Berg ( ; ; 9 February 1885 – 24 December 1935) was an Austrian composer of the Second Viennese School. His compositional style combined Romantic lyricism with the twelve-tone technique. Although he left a relatively sma ...

(1914–1924) * The last movement of

Maurice Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism in music, Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composer ...

's '' Violin Sonata No. 2'' (1923–1927) * The organ solo (movement 7) from Janáček's '' Glagolitic Mass'' (1926) * The last movement of the Violin Concerto by

Samuel Barber Samuel Osmond Barber II (March 9, 1910 – January 23, 1981) was an American composer, pianist, conductor (music), conductor, baritone, and music educator, and one of the most celebrated composers of the mid-20th century. Principally influenced ...

(1939) * The last movement of

Béla Bartók Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as Hunga ...

's Concerto for Orchestra(1943) * Prelude no. 2 in A minor from '' 24 Preludes and Fugues'' by

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded as a major composer. Shostak ...

(1950–1951). Also the third movement of his Symphony No. 8 in C minor * The final movement of

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, o ...

's ''

Cello Sonata A cello sonata is piece written sonata form, often with the instrumentation of a cello taking solo role with piano accompaniment. Some of the earliest cello sonatas were composed in the 18th century by Francesco Geminiani and Antonio Vivaldi, and ...

C Major C major is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common keys used in music. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative minor is A minor and its parallel min ...

Op. 65'' (1960). Also the third movement of his ''Suite for Violin and Piano Op. 6'' (1935), the finale of his first solo cello suite (1964) and the penultimate movement of his third cello suite (1972) *

Arvo Pärt Arvo Pärt (; born 11 September 1935) is an Estonian composer of contemporary classical music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs tintinnabuli, a compositional technique he invented. Pärt's music is in p ...

's orchestral ''Perpetuum mobile'' (1963) * "Perpetuum Mobile" by Michael Roberts, used as the startup music for

Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...

and earlier

ABC Weekend TV ABC Television Limited, popularly known as ABC Weekend TV, was a British broadcaster which provided the weekend service in the Midlands and Northern England regions of the Independent Television (ITV) network from 1956 to 1968. It was one of ...

* "Perpetuum Mobile for pedals alone" a showpiece for Organ by Wilhelm Middelschulte * "Fracture", a ''moto perpetuo'' piece based on the whole-tone scale composed by guitarist

Robert Fripp Robert Fripp (born 16 May 1946) is an English musician, composer, record producer, and author, best known as the guitarist, founder and longest-lasting member of the progressive rock band King Crimson. He has worked extensively as a session mu ...

and included on the 1974 album '' Starless and Bible Black'' * " Canto Ostinato" by Simeon ten Holt (1976) *

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before Presidency of John Adams, his presidency, he was a leader of ...

's '' Short Ride in a Fast Machine'' (1986) * " ''Perpetuum Mobile''" by Penguin Cafe Orchestra (1987) * "Velocities (Moto Perpetuo)" for solo marimba by Joseph Schwantner (1990) * "Equus" by Eric Whitacre (2000)

21st century

* The album '' Perpetuum Mobile'' by the German avant garde group

Einstürzende Neubauten (, 'Collapsing New Buildings') is a German experimental music group, formed in West Berlin in 1980. The band currently comprises founding members Blixa Bargeld (lead vocals, guitar, keyboard) and N.U. Unruh (custom-made instruments, percussion, ...

has some examples of the concept *

Neil Peart Neil Ellwood Peart ( ; September 12, 1952 – January 7, 2020) was a Canadian and American musician, known as the drummer, percussionist, and primary lyricist of the rock band Rush (band), Rush. He was known to fans by the nickname "the Profe ...

's drum solo "Moto perpetuo" on Rush's 2011 album '' Time Machine 2011: Live in Cleveland'' * "Nonstop" by

Juan María Solare Juan María Solare (born August 11, 1966) is an Argentina, Argentine composer and pianist. Education Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Solare studied and received his diploma in piano (María Teresa Criscuolo), Musical composition, composition (F ...

, piano solo

invention An invention is a unique or novelty (patent), novel machine, device, Method_(patent), method, composition, idea, or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It m ...

in the

time signature A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates th ...

5/8 (2020).

References

;Notes ;References {{DEFAULTSORT:Perpetuum Mobile Musical techniques Musical terminology Music genres