Da capo (, also , ) is an Italian musical term that means "from the beginning" (literally, "from the head"). It is often abbreviated as D.C. The term is a directive to

repeat Repeat may refer to: * Rerun, a rebroadcast of an episode of a radio or television program * Repeated sequence (DNA), a pattern of nucleic acid (DNA or RNA) that occurs in multiple copies throughout the genome ** CRISPR * The smallest rectangle th ...

the previous part of music, often used to save space, and thus is an easier way of saying to repeat the music from the beginning. In small pieces, this might be the same thing as a

. But in larger works, D.C. might occur after one or more repeats of small

sections Section, Sectioning or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sig ...

, indicating a return to the very beginning. The resulting

structure A structure is an arrangement and organization of interrelated elements in a material object or system, or the object or system so organized. Material structures include man-made objects such as buildings and machines and natural objects such a ...

of the piece is generally in

ternary form Ternary form, sometimes called song form, is a three-part musical form consisting of an opening section (A), a following section (B) and then a repetition of the first section (A). It is usually schematized as A–B–A. Prominent examples inclu ...

. Sometimes, the composer describes the part to be repeated, for example: ''Menuet da capo''. In

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

, where an

aria In music, an aria ( Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompa ...

of this structure is called a '' da capo aria'', the repeated section is often adorned with

grace note A grace note is a kind of music notation denoting several kinds of musical ornaments. It is usually printed smaller to indicate that it is melodically and harmonically nonessential. When occurring by itself, a single grace note indicates eith ...

s. The word ''Fine'' (Ital. 'end') is generally placed above the stave at the point where the movement ceases after a 'Da capo' repetition. Its place is occasionally taken by a pause (see

fermata A fermata (; "from ''fermare'', to stay, or stop"; also known as a hold, pause, colloquially a birdseye or cyclops eye, or as a grand pause when placed on a note or a rest) is a symbol of musical notation indicating that the note should be ...

)."Grove, George; Fuller-Maitland, John Alexander; Pratt, Waldo Selden; and Boyd, Charles Newell; eds. (1906).
Grove's dictionary of music and musicians
', p. 42. Macmillan. .

Variations

* Da Capo al Fine (often abbreviated as D.C. al Fine): Repeat from beginning to the end, or up to the word ''Fine'' (should that appear at the end of the passage)—the word ''Fine'' itself signifying the end. * Da Capo al Coda (often abbreviated as D.C. al Coda): Repeat from beginning to an indicated place and then play the tail part (the "

Coda Coda or CODA may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * Movie coda, a post-credits scene * ''Coda'' (1987 film), an Australian horror film about a serial killer, made for television *''Coda'', a 2017 American experimental film from Na ...

"). It directs the musician to go back and repeat the music from the beginning ("Capo"), and to continue playing until one reaches the first

coda Coda or CODA may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * Movie coda, a post-credits scene * ''Coda'' (1987 film), an Australian horror film about a serial killer, made for television *''Coda'', a 2017 American experimental film from Na ...

symbol. Upon reaching the first coda symbol, skip to the second coda symbol and continue playing until the end. The portion of the piece from the second coda to the end is often referred to as the "coda" of the piece, or quite literally as "the tail". This may also be instructed by simply using the words ''al Coda'' after which the musician is to skip to the written word ''Coda''. * Da Capo al Segno (often abbreviated as D.C. al Segno): It means "From the beginning to the sign (𝄋)".Stainer, John and Barrett, William Alexander (1898).
Stainer and Barrett's Dictionary of Musical Terms
', p. 133. Novello. .

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Da Capo Musical notation Italian words and phrases

Variations

See also

References