Tacet is

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

which translates literally into English as "(it) is silent" (pronounced: , , or ). It is a musical term to indicate that an instrument or voice does not sound, also known as a

rest Rest or REST may refer to: Relief from activity * Sleep ** Bed rest * Kneeling * Lying (position) * Sitting * Squatting position Structural support * Structural support ** Rest (cue sports) ** Armrest ** Headrest ** Footrest Arts and ente ...

. In vocal polyphony and in orchestral scores, it usually indicates a long period of time, typically an entire movement. In more modern music such as

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

, tacet tends to mark considerably shorter breaks. Multirests, or multiple-measure rests, are rests which last multiple measures (or multiple rests, each of which lasts an entire measure). Tacet Sheetmusic

It was common for early

symphonies A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning c ...

to leave out the

brass Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other wit ...

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

in certain movements, especially in slow (second) movements, and this is the instruction given in the parts for the player to wait until the end of the movement. Old multirests

It is also commonly used in

accompaniment Accompaniment is the musical part which provides the rhythmic and/or harmonic support for the melody or main themes of a song or instrumental piece. There are many different styles and types of accompaniment in different genres and styles ...

music to indicate that the instrument does not play on a certain run through a portion of the music, e.g. "Tacet 1st time." The phrase ''tacet al fine'' is used to indicate that the performer should remain silent for the remainder of the piece (or portion thereof), and need not, for example, count rests. Tacet may be appropriate when a particular instrument/voice/section, "is to rest for an entire section, movement, or composition." "Partial rests, of course, in every case must be written in. Even though it means 'silent,' the term ''tacet''...is not a wise substitution for a lengthy rest within a movement...The term ''tacet'', therefore, should be used ''only'' to indicate that a player rests throughout an . "N.C." ("no chord"Bissell, Patricia Melcher (2017). ''Classroom Keyboard: Play and Create Melodies with Chords'', p. 41. Rowman & Littlefield. .) is often used in guitar tablature or chord charts to indicate tacets, rests, or

caesura 300px, An example of a caesura in modern western music notation A caesura (, . caesuras or caesurae; Latin for "cutting"), also written cæsura and cesura, is a metrical pause or break in a verse where one phrase ends and another phrase begins. ...

s in the accompaniment.

Uses of tacet

The earliest known usage of the term is 1724. A unique usage of this term is in John Cage's 1952 composition

4′33″ ''4′33″'' (pronounced "four minutes, thirty-three seconds" or just "four thirty-three") is a three- movement composition by American experimental composer John Cage. It was composed in 1952, for any instrument or combination of instruments ...

. Tacet is indicated for all three movements, for all instruments. The piece's first performance lasted a total of 4 minutes and 33 seconds, without a note being played.

References

{{Musical notation Musical notation Musical terminology Latin words and phrases

Uses of tacet

See also

References