Which musical symbol means the music should gradually get louder, and its opposite is the diminuendo?

• A. Forte
• B. Crescendo
• C. Decrescendo
• D. Diminuendo

Answer: (B)

Gradual increases in loudness are shown by crescendo. This marking, whether written as the word cresENDO or shown as a hairpin that opens to the right, tells you to swell the sound from softer to louder over the indicated passage. The opposite marking is diminuendo (also called decrescendo), which instructs you to fade the volume as you continue. Among the options, crescENDO is the one that fits the description of getting louder over time. Forte means loud, but it doesn’t imply any change in volume; the other terms indicate decreasing volume rather than increasing.