# Short Orchestral Pieces



## SIoannou

Hi everyone,

I am searching for short orchestral pieces, or movements of pieces that are well known and can stand alone, of any period or composer. Basically what I am looking for are pieces similar to Bachs "Air", Ravel's Pavane for a dead princess, Barber's Adagio for Strings or Elgar's Salut d'amour. Anything around 15 minutes duration or less is perfect.
Thank you in advance


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## dgee

You might have to be more specific to get a useful response. What sort of occasion do you need this piece for?


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

Three good ones:
*Sibelius's* _The Bard_
Ligeti's _Atmosphères_
Xenakis's _Metastasis_


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## Winterreisender

You seem to be after slow, mournful or wistful pieces, in which case I can suggest the ever-popular "Intermezzo" from Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana






Or perhaps Vaughan Williams' "Variants on Dives and Lazarus."


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## SIoannou

dgee said:


> You might have to be more specific to get a useful response. What sort of occasion do you need this piece for?


I do not need the pieces for a specific occasion. I am simply looking for pieces I can listen to when I'm in the mood for some orchestral music and don't have time for an entire symphony.

Also I am not interesten ONLY in slow, mournfull pieces. It is just that I like slow pieces better and hence all pieces I suggested happen to be this way. Fast pieces are also welcome.

Thank you for your responses so far!!!


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## brotagonist

How about Shostakovich's _Ninth Symphony_? It is his second-shortest, entertaining listeners for about 26 minutes. Shostakovich called it "a joyful little piece".


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## Weston

Anything called an overture should fit the bill, but surely you would like Mendelssohn's Hebrides Overture (Fingal's Cave). 

I also think any parts of Holst's The Planets can be listened to out of context just fine. They are as individual works that happen to be arranged nicely into a suite, but not essentially so. 

Oh, we could go on and on. There are so many. Would you like more obscure suggestions?


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## Avey

From your comments, I believe Vaughn-Williams' _Fantasia on a Theme by Tallis_, _Lark Ascending_ would fit your bill. Also, while not _slow_ in a tempo-sense, or particularly mournful, Ravel's _La Valse_ is required re orchestral works.

But I would agree with Weston, "stand-alone" is a _huge_ category. And it's arbitrary as well. Elgar's _Alassio_ is 20 minutes long, a symphony in its own right, and is the same length as Sibelius' _Seventh_.


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## Guest

Go with overtures and tone poems.

Beethoven: Egmont and Coriolanus overtures
Tchaikovsky Romeo and Juliet overture and 1812 Overture
Grieg Peer Gynt
Wagner's overtures for Die Meistersinger and Tannhauser

Those are some of my favorites.


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## Reichstag aus LICHT

^^^^
Picking up on DrMike's excellent suggestion, any Rossini overture should do the trick. For tone-poems, try Strauss' _Till Eulenspiegel_ (just over 15 mins), or Rimsky's _Capriccio Espagnol_.


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## Weston

Reichstag aus LICHT said:


> ^^^^
> Picking up on DrMike's excellent suggestion, any Rossini overture should do the trick. For tone-poems, try Strauss' _Till Eulenspiegel_ (just over 15 mins), or Rimsky's _Capriccio Espagnol_.


Or Franz Liszt's _Les Preludes_ ~ 16 minutes.


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## Manxfeeder

There are also Debussy and Ravel's orchestrations of Satie's Gymnopedies.


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## Guest

Also:
Barber: Knoxville Summer 1915
Brahms: Alto Rhapsody
Mussorgsky: Night on the Bald Mountain
Tchaikovscky: Marche Slave; Serenade for Strings Op. 48
Smetana: Ma Vlast - the entire cycle is longer than you want, but each one is an individual tone poem and can stand on its own.


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## dgee

Arbitrarily - Tchaikovsky Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture, R. Strauss Don Juan, Vaughan Williams The Wasps Overture, Ravel Aloborado del Gracioso or Rhapsodie Espagnol or La Valse, Britten Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes, Barber Essays for Orchestra (1 or 2), Honneger Pacific 231, Resphigi Fountains of Rome (the only one I like but Pines of Rome is popular), Beethoven Fidelio Leonora and Egmont overtures

Probably enough to be getting on with!


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## Piwikiwi

Dukas - sorcerers apprentice
Debussy - prelude a l'apres-midi d'un faun


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## LordBlackudder




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## Lisztian

Many of Liszt's orchestral pieces are around the 15 minute mark (or less). Aside from the already mentioned Les Preludes, here are some of the best examples:

Orpheus: 




Mazeppa: 




Hamlet: 




Hunnenschlact: 




Von der Wiege bis zum Grabe: 




Der Nächtliche Zug:


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## Andreas

Bach (orch. Schoenberg) - St. Anne Fugue


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## DeepR

Liadov - The Enchanted Lake





Ravel - Toccata (orch. Zoltan Kocsis)





Scriabin - Reverie


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## Tristan

Rimsky-Korsakov - Sadko, a musical picture, Op. 5 
Rimsky-Korsakov - Dubinushka, Op. 62
Rimsky-Korsakov - Russian Easter Festival Overture, Op. 36 

Um...yeah, there's a bit of a pattern here


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

Brett Dean: Komarov's Fall. 
Sheer brilliance.


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## SIoannou

Thank you for your replies. I haven't had the chance to listen to everything yet, but will do so in the next dayd


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## spradlig

As several people replied, anything called an "overture" probably fills the bill, such as:
Brahms's "Academic Festival Overture" and "Tragic Overture" and
Shostakovich's "Festive Overture".
I'm pretty sure these have not been cited already.


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## starthrower

Tchaikovsky-Marche Slav
Borodin-In The Steppes Of Central Asia
Ives-Central Park In The Dark; The Unanswered Question


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## Andrei

As mentioned, most Overtures and Tone Poems will fit the bill. Here are a few others that don't fit into those categories

Piazzolla: Soledad (I never get tired of this)
Tchaikovsky: Serenade fro Strings
Dvorak: Serenade for Strings
Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2
Rimsky: Capriccio Espagnol
Schumann: Introduction and Allegro Apasionata 
Tallis: Spem in Alium
Stravinsky: Apollo
Borodin: In the Steppes of Central Asia
Bruch: In Memorium
VW: Tallis Fantasia
Beethoven: Violin Romance No. 2
Sibelius: Tapiola
Balakirev: Islamey
Philip Glass: Offering


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## senza sordino

Today, I listened to Tombeau de Couperin, Ravel. Lovely piece. Each movement is dedicated to a friend he lost in WWI.
Dvorak's Slavonic dances are each very short.
I frequently return to Smetena's Moldau, though the entire Ma Vlast is fantastic.


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## hreichgott

I'd add Beethoven Choral Fantasy. Good for if you don't have time for an actual piano concerto or the actual 9th symphony  It might be just over 15 min though.


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## PetrB

Wagner ~ Siegfried Idyll; pulling in after 24 minutes, but one contiguous piece, and a wonderful one.





The below are within or much nearer time spectrum.

Carl Nielsen ~ Helios Overture





Debussy ~ Any one of the _Trois Nocturnes_ (_Nuages, Fêtes, Sirènes_) fits 'the slot'
If you do not know of this music, I think you will want to 
_Nuages_ (clouds)




_Sirènes_





Honegger ~ Pastorale d'été 





Maurice Ravel ~ _Ma Mère l'Oye_





Charles Ives: You might want to check the various pieces from his suites called _"orchestral set."_ These include: 
_The Pond_




.....and this version with the ad libitum women's chorus....




_Central Park in the Dark_




_The unanswered question_





Stravinsky:
_Concerto in Eb; Dumbarton Oaks_ (chamber orchestra




_Danses Concertantes_








or the _Scenes de ballet_









Darius Milhaud:
_La Création du Monde_




Petite symphonies, 1 - 6 (for smaller chamber ensembles: three movement little symphonies each
with a duration of not much longer than six minutes or so  
Here is the first of the six: all six are easily found on the same subscriber's channel.





~ The _Concertino / Concertante_ ~ 
is a mini-concerto, or with a more prominent role for a solo instrumentalist: 
Here are several for piano and....
Gerald Finzi ~ Eclogue for piano and strings




Jean Françaix ~ _Concertino pour piano et orchestre_




Arthur Honegger _Concertino_ for piano and orchestra




Joseph Fennimore ~ Concerto Piccolo for piano and chamber orchestra




Luciano Berio ~ Concertino





A rather 'ambient' way to spend about twenty minutes would be to listen to:
Steve Reich ~ _Variations for Winds, Strings and Keyboards_
or the fully orchestral
John Adams ~ Common Tones in Simple Time


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## Sid James

SIoannou said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> I am searching for short orchestral pieces, or movements of pieces that are well known and can stand alone, of any period or composer. Basically what I am looking for are pieces similar to Bachs "Air", Ravel's Pavane for a dead princess, Barber's Adagio for Strings or Elgar's Salut d'amour. Anything around 15 minutes duration or less is perfect.
> Thank you in advance


Purcell Chacony in G Minor
Bizet Adagio from Symphony in C and Adagietto from L'Alresienne
Hovhaness Celestial Fantasy
Saint-Saens Allegro Appasionato for cello & orchestra

These are similar in terms of the Purcell being a Baroque era piece like the Bach, and having some of its emotional depth. The Bizet pieces have the delicacy, kind of subtle emotions of the Ravel, so that same aspect of French traditions. The Hovhaness, like the Barber, is an American piece for string orchestra (and it too was arranged from an initial version for string quartet). The Saint-Saens, like the Elgar, is one of the many encore/salon pieces he composed, I also have a soft spot for some of these "bread and butter" musics of the old days.


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## Eran

Anything orchestral under a minute - minute and a half...? 
The reason I'm asking is that my undergrad students are about to create videos that will be screened live during a concert. Producing longer (animated) videos is too complicated for our course.


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## User in F minor

The only ones I can think of right off the bat are in Webern's Six Pieces for Orchestra.


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## DeepR

DeepR said:


> Ravel - Toccata (orch. Zoltan Kocsis)


Am I the only one who likes this better than the original piano piece? It's just fantastic. The last part almost makes me jump out of my seat. It's like it was originally made for orchestra... but as I understand it, Ravel himself did orchestrate other piano pieces from the same set (Le Tombeau de Couperin), but not this piece.


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## maestro267

dgee said:


> Barber Essays for Orchestra (1 or 2)


Or 3! Essay No. 3 is a wonderful work from later in Barber's career, in the 1970s!


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## AH music

Enescu - both the Romanian Rhapsodies. Glazunov - La Mer. Rather more pastoral, Butterworth - Banks of Green Willow and A Shropshire Lad. Langgaard Symphony no 11 "Ixion" - just over 6 minutes.


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## QuietGuy

Faure's Pavane in F# minor. With or without the choir, it's very good either way!


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## PetrB

QuietGuy said:


> Faure's Pavane in F# minor. With or without the choir, it's very good either way!


The choir was an after-the-fact add-on to the work, completed some time before that addition, and done as per a commission. The addition is (to be kind) gratuitous, extraneous, and I'm sure Faure just did that one for the money


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## senza sordino

_Here are the contents to an "orchestral shorts" folder I made on my ipod. I copied the contents, I cut the names of the performers, but kept the composer, title and time. I often play this folder after school in my classroom when I don't want to start an entire symphony because I know it won't be long before I leave for home.

Not every piece is very short, and I have only one piece per composer_

Berlioz: Le Carnaval Romain Overture 8:38	
Mendelssohn: The Hebrides Overture 10:13
Brahms: Academic Festival Overture 9:46
Verdi: The Force Of Destiny - Overture 8:10
Strauss Jr. (J): Blue Danube 11:01

Wagner Tristan & Isolde - Prelude & Liebestod 18:20
Smetena The Moldau 11:59
Dvorak Karneval-Ouvertüre, 9:44
Saint Saens Bacchanale From Samson Et Dalila 6:52
Grieg: Symphonic Dances, Op. 64 - 3. Allegro Giocoso 5:48

Alfvén: Swedish Rhapsody No.1, "Midsommarvka" 13:39
Strauss (R): Till Eulenspiegels Lustige Streiche, Op. 28	15:37
Mussorgsky Night on the Bare Mountain	9:25
Tchaikovsky Marche Slave Op.31	9:56
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov 'Scheherazade', Sym Ste, Op.35	12:01

Enescu Romanian Rhapsody No.1 A-Dur, Op.11	13:29
Emanuel Chabrier España -	6:33
Massenet: Thais - Meditation	6:36
Debussy: Prélude À L'Après-Midi D'Un Faune, 11:20
Paul Dukas Sorcerers Apprentice 10:58

Ravel Pavane pour une Enfante defunte	6:57
Honegger - Pacific 231	6:33
Millaud La Creation du monde	16:41
Vaughan Williams: Fantasia On Greensleeves	4:35
Holst Egdon Heath (Homage to Hardy) Op. 47	14:43

Elgar Pomp And Circumstances March No. 4 G Major	5:23
Coates London Suite: 1.	14:20	
Warlock Capriol Suite	10:01
RVW Rhosymedre	4:03
Delius Brigg Fair	16:27

Bax Tintagel	14:55
Stravinsky Fireworks, Op. 4	3:41
Nielsen Helios Overture	12:09
Sibelius: Finlandia, Op. 26	7:58
Szymanowski Concert Overture, Op. 12	12:37

Lutoslawski: Symphonic Variations	8:56
Shostakovich: Festive Overture, Op. 96	6:02
Britten: An American Overture 9:07
Gerswhin Variations on "I Got Rhythm"	7:59
Copland: El Salón México	10:56

Bernstein Overture to Candide (Allegro molto con brio)	4:13
Barber Adagio for Strings, Op. 11a	8:23


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## atmplayspiano

Cherubini: overture to Medée. Very dramatic.


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## Rhombic

I have just played (today) _Andante festivo_, by Jean Sibelius, which is also quite easy and accessible. Sounds fine.
One orchestral work that I discovered around a month ago is by Carl Nielsen: _Helios Overture_. Quite colourful for the French horns while it is not difficult for the performers.


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## Blancrocher

Rhombic said:


> I have just played (today) _Andante festivo_, by Jean Sibelius, which is also quite easy and accessible.


It's a beautiful work: I've especially enjoyed hearing Sibelius himself conduct the piece. Incidentally, I hadn't been aware that the work was initially composed for string quartet in 1922; the more famous orchestral version dates from 1938.


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## BRHiler

brotagonist said:


> How about Shostakovich's _Ninth Symphony_? It is his second-shortest, entertaining listeners for about 26 minutes. Shostakovich called it "a joyful little piece".


What I love most about the 9th is not the piece itself, but the reason it exists. Everyone expected a big, huge 9th symphony, ala Beethoven, Mahler, Bruckner, etc. Note that all of those are Symphonies in D (Major and minor).

What does Shostakovich do? He writes a 26 minute symphony, ala Mozart (on drugs) that's in the ke of Eb!

This is why I love D.S.!


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