Complete Encyclopaedia of Music/A/Abbreviation

Abbreviation. A stroke which, placed over or under a note, divides it into quavers, if there be only one ; if two, into semiquavers ; if three, into demisemiquavers. Persons who are accustomed to reading music which has been written or copied with the pen, will perhaps have considered abbreviations, as they frequently occur in such music, as a kind of SHORT HAND, as it is the art of reducing something to a smaller compass, and occurs alike in music and in speech. The marks of abbreviation are generally written with strokes, thus : =, which are representatives of ties, and signify that as many notes are to be played as tied notes as are contained in the written note.