affekt

Affection or passion — the doctrine that each piece of music should express a single, unified emotional state throughout. In Froberger's suites and tombeaux, each movement has a clearly defined affekt that the performer must identify and sustain.

Before playing any Froberger movement, determine its affekt: is it grief, joy, agitation, melancholy, tenderness? Every ornament, every dynamic shade, every tempo nuance should serve that single emotional quality. A movement with a mixed affekt signals something programmatic.