Crescendo vs Decrescendo

Side-by-side comparison of two musical terms.

	Crescendo	Decrescendo
Definition	Gradually getting louder	Gradually getting softer.
Category	dynamics	dynamics
Pronunciation	kreh-SHEN-doh	deh-kreh-SHEN-doh
Origin	Italian	Italian
BPM	—	—
Synonyms	getting louder increasing volume	Diminuendo
Antonyms	diminuendo decrescendo	Crescendo
Usage	The orchestra builds through a long crescendo over eight bars before the climax.	A long decrescendo from fortissimo to pianissimo creates the effect of sound disappearing into the distance.

Definition: Gradually getting louder
Category: dynamics
Pronunciation: kreh-SHEN-doh
Origin: Italian
Synonyms: getting louder increasing volume
Antonyms: diminuendo decrescendo
Usage: The orchestra builds through a long crescendo over eight bars before the climax.

Definition: Gradually getting softer.
Category: dynamics
Pronunciation: deh-kreh-SHEN-doh
Origin: Italian
Synonyms: Diminuendo
Antonyms: Crescendo
Usage: A long decrescendo from fortissimo to pianissimo creates the effect of sound disappearing into the distance.