Miniature Suite after Schnittke

Instrumentation

solo piano

Duration

7 minutes

Score

View the score

Program Notes

I recently came across Alfred Schnittke’s charming Eight Pieces for Piano, and was inspired to write my own set of eight miniatures in a style approximating his. These pieces are all short – anywhere from 30 seconds to a minute and a half long – and each depicts a whimsical scene. There are few hand crossings, almost no use of the pedal, almost no large stretches or quick jumps. In short, while some are more difficult than others, all of these pieces should be playable by young pianists. Most of them are at least somewhat tonal; however, I’ve found that young musicians don’t really care much whether a piece is very tonal or not, as long as they hear what it sounds like, it’s fun to play and captures their imagination.