Vivace means lively, and like allegro it is a character word that acquired a speed. It is quicker than allegro and slower than presto, but the more useful distinction is in the energy: a vivace is bright and spirited, where a presto is simply very fast.
It is used as a qualifier at least as often as on its own — allegro vivace is a bright allegro rather than a tempo between the two, and molto vivace is Beethoven’s marking for one of the fastest scherzos in the repertoire. Its own diminutive, vivacissimo, pushes into presto territory.
Pieces marked vivace
The middle column is the marking exactly as it is printed, qualifiers and all — which is usually more instructive than the word on its own.
| Piece | Marked |
|---|---|
| Beethoven — Symphony No. 7, 1st movement | Poco sostenuto – Vivace |
| Beethoven — Symphony No. 9, 2nd movement | Molto vivace |
Where vivace sits
The markings on either side, with the ranges the reference tables give them. They overlap, and that is not an error in the table — it is what the words are like.
| Marking | BPM | Character |
|---|---|---|
| Allegro moderato | 116–120 BPM | not quite allegro |
| Allegro | 120–168 BPM | fast and bright |
| Vivace | 168–176 BPM | lively and fast |
| Presto | 168–200 BPM | very fast |
The full ladder, from larghissimo to prestissimo, is on the index page.
How much to trust the number
Three things are true of every range on this site, and of every tempo table anywhere else:
- They are ranges, not values. Vivace is a band 8 BPM wide, and both ends of it are correct.
- They varied by era. The words are centuries older than the metronome — Maelzel patented his in 1815, long after composers were writing adagio at the top of a page — so the numbers were fitted to the vocabulary afterwards, by people who disagreed. A Baroque andante and a Romantic andante are not the same speed, and neither is wrong.
- A metronome mark on the score always wins. If the music says ♩ = 96, that is the tempo, and the Italian word above it is telling you about character rather than speed. Set the number, ignore the table.
Vivace’s band is narrow and its usage is not: as a qualifier it can attach to a tempo well below 168, and allegro vivace is a description of character, not an average of two numbers.
One housekeeping note about this site specifically. The metronome’s live readout has to print exactly one marking for any tempo, so it uses a narrower, non-overlapping ladder in which vivace runs 168–175 BPM. That band sits inside the 168–176 BPM above; it is the same marking, cut so that two names can never claim the same BPM.
Frequently asked questions
How fast is vivace?
Vivace is 168–176 BPM — lively and fast, a step above allegro and just short of presto.
What is vivace in BPM?
Vivace is usually given as 168–176 BPM. At 168 BPM — the middle of that band, and the tempo the metronome on this page opens at — one beat lasts 357 milliseconds. Vivace’s band is narrow and its usage is not: as a qualifier it can attach to a tempo well below 168, and *allegro vivace* is a description of character, not an average of two numbers.
Is vivace faster than presto?
Presto is the faster of the two: 168–200 BPM against 168–176 BPM. The two ranges overlap in most published tables, which is normal — these are descriptions of character that were fitted to numbers afterwards, so neighbouring markings shade into each other rather than meeting at a line.