The Best short Composition ever written

[Ten thumbs]

It may just be that the best short composition ever (if indeed there could be such a thing) was composed by a specialist in miniatures who never made it into the ranks of the greats. There are so many of these that it would take a lifetime to sift through them. Here's a very nice example, although by no means a candidate: Kirchner Albumblatt Op.7 No.7.
Personally I prefer  more passion, so here are some more main stream suggestions:
Scriabin Preludes Op.74 No.3, or No.5.
Fanny Hensel Song 'Kein blick der Hoffnung, which packs three tumultuous verses into a little over a minute.

[Saul]

It may just be that the best short composition ever (if indeed there could be such a thing) was composed by a specialist in miniatures who never made it into the ranks of the greats. There are so many of these that it would take a lifetime to sift through them. Here's a very nice example, although by no means a candidate: Kirchner Albumblatt Op.7 No.7.
Personally I prefer  more passion, so here are some more main stream suggestions:
Scriabin Preludes Op.74 No.3, or No.5.
Fanny Hensel Song 'Kein blick der Hoffnung, which packs three tumultuous verses into a little over a minute.

You have made some very good points.

[12tone.]

This is the best!

And the A & W Bear even conducts (!), with a baton at that!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwygS3UKPZM

[12tone.]

My Youtube video won't show!

[Saul]

This should do...

http://www.youtube.com/v/OwygS3UKPZM

[Saul]

Indeed, the Chopin Preludes, each one of them a gem. The G and A Majors are about as short as possible for a small piece, but PERFECTION.

ZB

Yes, they are great indeed.

[Octo_Russ]

I've always loved Vaughan Williams Six Studies In English Folksong, usually played by Clarinet and Piano, each lasts under 2 minutes, my favourite is the fifth, here played by Alto Saxophone and Piano, taking roughly 1:20,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S57m9NRLE68

[Saul]

I've always loved Vaughan Williams Six Studies In English Folksong, usually played by Clarinet and Piano, each lasts under 2 minutes, my favourite is the fifth, here played by Alto Saxophone and Piano, taking roughly 1:20,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S57m9NRLE68

This is really beautiful.

[Saul]

http://www.youtube.com/v/8alxBofd_eQ

[abidoful]

The shortest of Boulez's piano Notations lasts 20 seconds (X - "mecanique et tres sec," Aimard's DGG recording).

The best short composition ever written was never written. Well, not by Gyorgy Kurtag at least who in a 1997 interview said he "once wanted to write an orchestral piece: a single gesture, terribly virtuosic, terribly difficult, with everything superposed on everything else, lasting not even a minute."

At the premiere of Troussova in 1981 Kurtag told Sylvain Cambreling he was trying to put a thousand Angels on the tip of a needle.

When Abbado commissioned a work from him he considered writing an orchestral work consisting only of one chord. Unable to pull it off he wrote STELE instead.

nice post

[Popov]

I'll say Mosolov's Three Little Pieces and Two Dances. There are tons of awesomeness in all five, but the third one has the highest ratio: 10 bars. I'm positive it was in youtube but I can't find it, I'll upload them tomorrow (a shame though, it was a professional performance).

I have one-- Ligeti's Ricercata 8:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2mcaDO03Jg

My personal favorite (closely followed by that one, the third one, the one with the Philip Glass-like ostinato xD and the "barrel organ" waltz):

http://www.youtube.com/v/W6ARpdOgKVA

[Popov]

http://www.youtube.com/v/NZpRjk3IbBI

Short pieces can't get much more difficult

[Chaszz]

I nominate a Wagner "bleeding chunk," the Forest Murmurs and Woodbird scene from Siegfried. Lasts only about two or three minutes, IMHO a candidate for perhaps the nicest two or three minutes in music.

(I was surprised when I saw Siegfried at the Met to note that the Woodbird's song in this short segment is played alternately and successively by piccolo, clarinet and flute.)   

[DavidW]

Popov-- great pieces you posted there!

[Octo_Russ]

Also there are some wonderful Guitar miniatures, Manuel Maria Ponce composed 24 Guitar Preludes, the whole lot lasts for just under 24 minutes, and about two thirds of them last for under a minute, my favourites are No5 & 8,

Here's No5 on YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkYBw9sw75A the Guitarist goes straight into No6 on 43 seconds.

And No 8, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olGivTmpkhg which must be my favourite, lasting a whopping one and a half minutes.



And here's the disc that i bought over ten years ago, which caused my love of these 24 Preludes to develop, and this disc is still getting played on a regular basis, Ponce is quite a find, and i mentioned him and this disc in my Blog four months ago,
http://octoruss.blogspot.com/2010/06/ponce-24-guitar-preludes-dieci.html