Fidelio is a typeface family of eight weights with italics. The high contrast of the vertical to horizontal strokes recalls the Italian Moderne favored by Bodoni and other eighteenth century typefounders. In Fidelio the stress is vertical, with fine horizontal serifs and sturdy stems. The generous serifing of the text weights helps the reader's eye maintain the reading line and thus heads off some of the dazzle and fall-through that can make other Moderns, as graphically intriguing as they are, difficult to read in long texts.

With eight weights --each successively darker -- the designer has a full palette of greys available, ranging from pale Fine to dark Ultra. Each face, including the italics, sets to the same measure, so a change of weight will never force new line breaks or repagination of layouts.