Portamento (Italian for “carrying”) is a performance technique in which a sound is smoothly “carried,” sliding from one note to another without a clear boundary between them. It is like a musical “sigh” that conveys heightened emotion, tenderness, or longing.
Portamento is natural for the voice and for fretless instruments — the bowed strings (violin, cello), the trombone (thanks to its slide), the theremin. On the piano, with its fixed pitches, true portamento cannot be achieved. Moderate, tasteful portamento is a powerful expressive means of Romantic music; excessive portamento is a sign of poor taste. Kindred to it is the glissando — a faster and “audible” slide through all the intermediate notes. Portamento lends a performance human warmth and a singing quality.
