Musical miniaturism

The practice of writing extremely short musical works — lasting seconds or a very few minutes — in which maximum concentration of expression is achieved in minimum time. Webern is the supreme exponent: his Op. 11 No. 3 for cello and piano lasts approximately 40 seconds; his Five Pieces for Orchestra Op. 10 last a total of about four minutes. Miniaturism in Webern is not abbreviation of something longer but a fundamental aesthetic: the belief that the most intense expression requires the most concentrated form. The concept influenced Cage, Feldman, and generations of post-war composers.

In performing Webern's miniatures, resist the temptation to 'fill in' the silences or smooth out the discontinuities: the gaps are the work. Each isolated gesture must be fully realised — a single pizzicato or a single piano chord can carry enormous weight in a work that lasts forty seconds. Practice each gesture as if it were a complete piece in itself.