What is a cadenza? An answer for kids

A cadenza is the part of a concerto where the orchestra stops and the soloist plays alone. It is the soloist’s moment to show what they and the instrument can do. Most cadenzas come near the end of the first movement and last from one to three minutes.

How to spot a cadenza

1. The orchestra builds up and stops on a big, unfinished chord.
2. The conductor’s arms drop. The players sit still.
3. The soloist plays alone. The music is free. It speeds up, slows down, and roams over the whole instrument.
4. A long trill. The soloist shakes between two notes. This is the signal.
5. The orchestra comes back in and finishes the movement.

Where the word comes from

“Cadenza” is the Italian word for “cadence,” which is the closing of a musical phrase. The cadenza grew from the custom of decorating the last cadence of a piece. Singers in operas did it first, and instrument players followed.

Made up on the spot

For a long time, the cadenza was not written down. The soloist made it up during the concert, using the tunes of the movement. Mozart and Beethoven, who played their own piano concertos, were famous for this.

The score showed only a pause sign over the orchestra’s chord. The rest was up to the player.

Written down

Over time, composers began to write their cadenzas out.

• Beethoven wrote the solo passages into his last piano concerto, the “Emperor,” and told the pianist not to add a cadenza.
• Mendelssohn wrote the cadenza for his Violin Concerto himself, and he placed it in the middle of the first movement.
• Later composers wrote the cadenza into the score as a matter of course.

For the older concertos, players today have a choice. They can play a cadenza by the composer, a cadenza by a famous player of the past, or one of their own.

Cadenzas to hear

Piano Concerto, first movement, by Grieg. A grand cadenza that builds from a whisper to thunder.

Violin Concerto, first movement, by Mendelssohn. The cadenza ends in rippling notes, and the orchestra slips back in under them.

Brandenburg Concerto No. 5, first movement, by Bach. The harpsichord plays a long, wild solo. Read the harpsichord for kids.

Violin Concerto, first movement, by Tchaikovsky. The cadenza comes in the middle of the movement.

Piano Concerto No. 21, first movement, by Mozart. Mozart left no cadenza for it, so each pianist chooses one.

Clarinet Concerto, by Copland. A long cadenza joins the slow first part to the jazzy second part.

Cadenzas for singers

Opera singers have cadenzas too. Near the end of an aria, the orchestra holds a chord, and the singer adds a run of fast, high notes. Read opera words for kids.

Why have a cadenza?

• To show skill. Fast runs, big leaps, and special effects.
• To play with the tunes. A good cadenza uses the tunes of the movement in new ways.
• To build suspense. The listener waits for the orchestra to return.

Cadenza and cadence

The two words are related, and they are easy to mix up.

Word	Meaning
Cadence	The few notes or chords that close a phrase
Cadenza	A long solo passage in a concerto

Things to do together

Catch the trill. Play a cadenza. Your child raises a hand at the long trill, just before the orchestra returns.

Watch the conductor. In a video, look for the moment the conductor stops and turns to watch the soloist.

Spot the tunes. Listen to the first movement before the cadenza. Then ask which tunes the soloist used.

Make a cadenza. Your child plays or sings a short tune they know. Then they play with it for 20 seconds: faster, slower, higher, lower. End with a trill.

Time it. Use a stopwatch to time two cadenzas. Which soloist played longer?

Print and play

Use a listening journal page for each concerto. Read what is a concerto? and symphony, concerto, and sonata explained.