Little Symphonies

In the spirit of Stravinsky’s neoclassicism and Prokofiev’s Classical Symphony, I have composed two Little Symphonies, each comprising four sprightly movements played without pause.

Little Symphony No. 1 begins with a jagged brassy Fanfare, rushing woodwinds whirling us on into Flight, a slow movement in which swift airborne figures move over a landscape slowly turning below. These figures build up into the Scherzo, fierce baroque arpeggios giving way to dramatic, soaring melodies, before all of the previous musical ideas are gathered together in a joyous Finale.

Little Symphony No. 2 starts with a vigorous Intrada, then makes a sudden left turn and transforms into a rough, bumptious Burlesque. This subsides into a gentle Pastorale, which leads into a rondo-finale, except instead of a traditional lighthearted conclusion the symphony freezes strangely in place, mechanical Automata stuck repeating half-remembered fragments of previous themes.