Accelerando vs Rallentando

Side-by-side comparison of two musical terms.

	Accelerando	Rallentando
Definition	Gradually getting faster.	Gradually slowing down; broadening the tempo.
Category	tempo	tempo
Pronunciation	ah-cheh-leh-RAHN-doh	rah-lehn-TAHN-doh
Origin	Italian	Italian
BPM	—	—
Synonyms	speeding up quickening	slowing down broadening
Antonyms	Ritardando Rallentando	Accelerando Stringendo
Usage	An accelerando through the final bars drives the piece to a thrilling conclusion.	A gentle rallentando at the phrase ending gives the music a natural sense of repose.

Definition: Gradually getting faster.
Category: tempo
Pronunciation: ah-cheh-leh-RAHN-doh
Origin: Italian
Synonyms: speeding up quickening
Antonyms: Ritardando Rallentando
Usage: An accelerando through the final bars drives the piece to a thrilling conclusion.

Definition: Gradually slowing down; broadening the tempo.
Category: tempo
Pronunciation: rah-lehn-TAHN-doh
Origin: Italian
Synonyms: slowing down broadening
Antonyms: Accelerando Stringendo
Usage: A gentle rallentando at the phrase ending gives the music a natural sense of repose.