Time for less - reduced versions and smaller instrumentations
Time for less - reduced versions and smaller instrumentations
Time for less - reduced versions and smaller instrumentations
On this page you will find our campaigns, which specifically deal with reduced versions and smaller instrumentations. Each of these themes leads you to a carefully selected list of works, which has been conceptually thought through. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions.
We live in a time of reduction. But what we do not want to reduce, is our claim to make our life rich and valuable with music – meeting these demands is currently very difficult for concert halls and opera houses.
Therefore Universal Edition has created a list of reduced versions of masterpieces that make it possible to continue experiencing music as an indispensable nourishment - live and reflecting the great power of music
→ Browse through our catalogue!
We have picked out a selection of contemporary pieces which are not only written for a smaller instrumentation, responding to the new requirements in concert halls, but which also in a way reflect the current mood and situation we're all facing in these challenging times of social distancing.
→ Browse through our catalogue!
→ Browse through our catalogue!
The simple fact that Arvo Pärt is the most frequently performed contemporary composer shows how deeply he moves his listeners with this understanding of music. Far beyond the boundaries of the musical world, Pärt has become a synonym for inwardness and spirituality. His uncompromising search for truthfulness has led him to find a language that is understood and loved worldwide.
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Many of Kurt Weill’s works employ instruments in groupings considerably smaller than that of even a traditional chamber orchestra. This can make for ideal programming choices in these challenging times. Weill’s approach to stage works often allowed for, as he said himself, ‘concert and theatrical possibilities on an equal basis’. Thus, the humane engagement and social conscience that lie at the heart of Weill’s work can come through effectively even in un-staged or semi-staged formats. The following Weill works are set for ensembles or chamber orchestra, offering a perfect fit for small-scale performances in times of social distancing.
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Béla Bartók's Bluebeard's Castle and Richard Strauss' Elektra are two of the most enigmatic one-act operas of the early 20th century. Together with Sweat of the Sun by David Fennessy, which was written a little more than a hundred years later, these three works are the most recent addition to our music theatre catalogue focussing on pieces for a smaller instrumentation. Please also check out our Chamber Opera Catalogue to find out about more small-scale operas.