A musical tempo marking indicating a slow, graceful pace; a musical piece or movement performed at this tempo.
From Italian 'adagio,' from Latin 'ad agio' (at ease/at leisure). Adopted into English from Italian musical terminology in the 17th-18th centuries.
Adagio literally means 'at ease'—which is why Baroque composers used it for the most emotionally vulnerable moments, because slowness in music mirrors the human need to linger in sadness or contemplation.
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