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I usually know what it means when a note has both a stem pointing up and another pointing down (What does this note have a stem pointing up and another pointing down?), but what if it has something like a staccato in one voice, while something else (e.g. legato) in the other? In the example below, should I play the second to last note in the bass clef as a 16th-note staccato or hold it as a regular quarter note?

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(Excerpt from the 2nd movement of Beethoven’s Sonata No. 2, Op. 2/2)

Also, is there a general rule for playing this (like “hold down for the full duration of the longer note value”, which seems to usually be the case), or is it just contextual, or perhaps a matter of interpretation that’s up to the performer?

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  • Hold for the duration of the longer note. The lower voice continues, while the higher voice is still playing that note. – Aric Aug 15 '16 at 13:22
  • Aric's right, but your example is confusing me. What are the clefs? I don't see any instances of the same note other than the repeated A in the treble (assumed) clef. –  Aug 15 '16 at 14:48
  • I am referring to the fifth 16-note in the left hand/bottom staff, the D with stems going both up and down. – fioritura Aug 15 '16 at 15:04
  • I'm just seeing this after it's been edited, but it's certainly not a duplicate now. Good question. – Bacs Aug 15 '16 at 15:14
  • This is certainly not a duplicate question.The stem part has some bearing , but only to identify the note(s) in question. – Tim Aug 15 '16 at 16:02
  • I'm not sure how to reopen it, is there anything I should be doing as the OP? – fioritura Aug 16 '16 at 07:50
  • 5 community votes or 1 mod vote can reopen, fioritura. With the edits I agree it's not a dupe - happy to reopen. – Doktor Mayhem Aug 16 '16 at 08:14
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    Fun Fact ( :-) ) - on string instruments that indicates playing the same note on two strings simultaneously. – Carl Witthoft Aug 16 '16 at 11:36

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Under the circumstances, you're going to have to fake it. The tenor needs to be held, so you'll need to give an impression of a staccato note at unison. You do this by creating a commonality between the held note and the staccato bass notes, and that will likely be by stressing all the bass notes (including the held one) very slightly. This is usually a tendency when playing staccato anyway, and very definitely when playing staccatissimo like this passage.