Little Symphonies Nos. 7 & 8

My fourth pair of miniature symphonies for classical orchestra begins with Little Symphony No. 7, a richly Romantic work inspired by such occasionally overripe late-nineteenth century symphonists as Bruckner and Brahms. As an Exordium, the symphony opens with quiet rustling strings, winds calling to one another across great distances, before exploding into ardor. This is followed by a Toccata, a vaguely minimal scherzo shifting between groups of two and three, interrupted by clattering col legno clocks. Instead of a slow movement—this symphony has no real slow movement, although the harmonies often move only with reluctance—we next find a Commedia, wooden puppets awkwardly dancing. Little Symphony No. 7 concludes with a Peroration, the heraldry of blazing brass increasingly insistent across bountiful fields of luxuriant strings and woodwinds.