A sinfonietta is a

symphony A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning com ...

that is smaller in scale (either in terms of length or the instrumental forces required), or lighter in approach than a standard symphony. Although of Italian form, the word is not genuine in that language and has seldom been used by Italian composers. It appears to have been coined in 1874 by

Joachim Raff Joseph Joachim Raff (27 May 182224 or 25 June 1882) was a German-Swiss composer, pedagogue and pianist. Biography Raff was born in Lachen in Switzerland. His father, a teacher, had fled there from Württemberg in 1810 to escape forced recruitme ...

for his Op. 188, but became common usage only in the early 20th century . Just as the term ''symphony'' itself can refer to pieces of music of varied size and scope, it is difficult to identify common criteria which pieces called ''sinfonietta'' share. Many of the sinfoniettas listed on this page employ larger forces and/or are longer than pieces designated symphonies, sometimes even by the same composer. Examples of sinfoniettas include: * William Alwyn's Sinfonietta for strings (1970) *

Malcolm Arnold Sir Malcolm Henry Arnold (21 October 1921 – 23 September 2006) was an English composer. His works feature music in many genres, including a cycle of nine symphonies, numerous concertos, concert works, chamber music, choral music and music ...

's Sinfonietta No. 1, Op. 48 (1954), Sinfonietta No. 2, Op. 65 (1958), and Sinfonietta No. 3, Op. 81 (1964) * Alexander Arutiunian's Sinfonietta for string orchestra (1966) *

Jürg Baur Jürg Baur (11 November 1918 – 31 January 2010) was a German composer whose works include ''Incontri and Mutazioni.'' Baur studied at the Cologne University of Music and taught there in his later years. Baur was also awarded the Federal Cro ...

's ''Triton-Sinfonietta: 3 Grotesken für Kammerorchester'' (1974) * Maciej Bałenkowski's Sinfonietta no. 1 "Time is ticking" for string orchestra (2013/2014) and Sinfonietta no. 2 "Polonia" - hommage à Wojciech Kilar for string orchestra (2017/2018) * Arnold Bax's Sinfonietta (1932) *

Lennox Berkeley Sir Lennox Randal Francis Berkeley (12 May 190326 December 1989) was an English composer. Biography Berkeley was born on 12 May 1903 in Oxford, England, the younger child and only son of Aline Carla (1863–1935), daughter of Sir James Char ...

's Sinfonietta, Op. 34 (1950) *

Herbert Blendinger Herbert Blendinger (3 January 1936 - 15 May 2020) was an Austrian composer and viola player of German origin. Career Born in Ansbach, Blendinger studied viola and composition with Willy Horwath and Max Gebhard at the conservatory in Nuremberg, ...

's Sinfonietta, Op. 30 (1976) *

Eugène Bozza Eugène Joseph Bozza (4 April 1905 – 28 September 1991)Grove Music Online: "Bozza, Eugène"; accessed 20 September 2014, http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/03791. was a French composer and violinist. He was one of t ...

's Sinfonietta for string orchestra, Op. 61 (1944) * Mikis Theodorakis's Sinfonietta for piano, flauto and string orchestra (1947) *

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

's Sinfonietta, Op. 1 (1932) * George Whitefield Chadwick's Sinfonietta (1904) *

Henry Cowell Henry Dixon Cowell (; March 11, 1897 – December 10, 1965) was an American composer, writer, pianist, publisher and teacher. Marchioni, Tonimarie (2012)"Henry Cowell: A Life Stranger Than Fiction" ''The Juilliard Journal''. Retrieved 19 June 202 ...

's Sinfonietta for chamber orchestra (1928) *

Ingolf Dahl Ingolf Dahl (June 9, 1912 – August 6, 1970) was a German-born American composer, pianist, conductor, and educator. Biography Dahl was born Walter Ingolf Marcus in Hamburg, Germany, to a German Jewish father, attorney Paul Marcus, and his Swed ...

's Sinfonietta for concert band * Ikuma Dan's Sinfonietta (1974) * Peter Maxwell Davies's ''Sinfonietta accademica'' (1987) *

Louis Durey Louis Edmond Durey (; 27 May 18883 July 1979)Randel, Don Michael (1996)The Harvard biographical dictionary of music, p. 232. Harvard University Press. . was a French composer. Life Louis Durey was born in Paris, the son of a local businessman. It ...

's Sinfonietta for strings, Op. 105 (1966) *

Ulvi Cemal Erkin Ulvi Cemal Erkin () (March 14, 1906 – September 15, 1972) was a member of the pioneer group of symphonic composers in Turkey, born in the period 1904–1910, who later came to be called The Turkish Five. These composers set out the direction of ...

's Sinfonietta for string orchestra (1951–59) * Iván Erőd's ''Minnesota Sinfonietta'', Op. 51 *

Harald Genzmer Harald or Haraldr is the Old Norse form of the given name Harold. It may refer to: Medieval Kings of Denmark * Harald Bluetooth (935–985/986) Kings of Norway * Harald Fairhair (c. 850–c. 933) * Harald Greycloak (died 970) * Harald Hardrada ...

's Sinfonietta for string orchestra * Peggy Glanville-Hicks's Sinfonietta No. 1 in D minor for small orchestra (1935) and Sinfonietta No. 2 for orchestra (1938) * Kimmo Hakola's Sinfonietta (1999) * Ernesto Halffter's Sinfonietta in D major (1925) * Josef Matthias Hauer's Sinfonietta in 3 Sätzen, Op. 50 *

Bernard Herrmann Bernard Herrmann (born Maximillian Herman; June 29, 1911December 24, 1975) was an American composer and conductor best known for his work in composing for films. As a conductor, he championed the music of lesser-known composers. He is widely re ...

's Sinfonietta for string orchestra (1935) *

Paul Hindemith Paul Hindemith (; 16 November 189528 December 1963) was a German composer, music theorist, teacher, violist and conductor. He founded the Amar Quartet in 1921, touring extensively in Europe. As a composer, he became a major advocate of the ''Ne ...

's ''Lustige Sinfonietta'', Op. 4 (1916), and Symphonietta (Little Symphony) in E major (1949) * Alun Hoddinott's Sinfonietta No. 1, Op. 56 (1968), Sinfonietta No. 2, Op. 67 (1969), Sinfonietta No. 3, Op. 71 (1970), and Sinfonietta No. 4 (1971) *

Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov Mikhail Mikhailovich Ippolitov-Ivanov (russian: Михаи́л Миха́йлович Ипполи́тов-Ива́нов; 28 January 1935) was a Russian and Soviet composer, conductor and teacher. His music ranged from the late-Romantic era ...

's Sinfonietta, Op. 34 (arrangement for large orchestra of Violin Sonata, Op. 8) (1902) * Leoš Janáček's Sinfonietta (1926) * John Joubert's Sinfonietta for chamber orchestra, Op. 38 * Pál Kadosa's Sinfonietta for orchestra * Robert Kajanus's Sinfonietta, Op. 16 (1915) *

Vítězslava Kaprálová Vítězslava Kaprálová (; 24 January 191516 June 1940) was a Czech composer and conductor of 20th-century classical music. Life and career Vítězslava Kaprálová was born in Brno, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Czech Republic), a daughter of ...

's ''Military'' Sinfonietta, Op. 11 (1937) *

Nikolai Kapustin Nikolai Girshevich Kapustin (russian: link=no, Никола́й Ги́ршевич Капу́стин ; 22 November 19372 July 2020) was a Soviet composer and pianist of Russian-Jewish descent. He played with early Soviet jazz bands such as the ...

's Sinfonietta for orchestra, Op. 49 (1986) * Erich Wolfgang Korngold's Sinfonietta in B major, Op. 5 (1912) * Ernst Krenek's Sinfonietta for string orchestra, "A brasileira", Op. 131 (1952) *

Ladislav Kubík Ladislav Kubík (26 August 1946 – 27 October 2017) was a Czech-American composer. His style is associated with other post-war Eastern European composers, such as Krzysztof Penderecki and Witold Lutosławski. He graduated from the Music and Danc ...

's Sinfonietta No. 1 for 19 instruments (1999), No. 2, "Jacob’s Well" for orchestra (1999) and No. 3, "Gong" for mezzo-soprano, mixed choir, orchestra and electronics (2007-08) * James MacMillan's Sinfonietta (1991) *

Elizabeth Maconchy Dame Elizabeth Violet Maconchy LeFanu (; 19 March 1907 – 11 November 1994) was an Irish-English composer. She is considered to be one of the finest composers Great Britain and Ireland have produced. Biography Elizabeth Violet Maconchy was b ...

's Sinfonietta (1976), not to be confused with her Little Symphony (1980–81) *

Tomás Marco Tomás Marco Aragón (born 12 September 1942) is a Spanish composer and writer on music. Life and work Marco was born in Madrid where he later studied violin and composition, while at the same time pursuing the study of law (he received his li ...

's Sinfonietta No. 1 ("Opaco resplandor de la memoria"), for orchestra (1998–99), and Sinfonietta No. 2 "Curvas del Guadiana" (2004) * Igor Markevitch's Sinfonietta in F (1928–29) *

Bohuslav Martinů Bohuslav Jan Martinů (; December 8, 1890 – August 28, 1959) was a Czech composer of modern classical music. He wrote 6 symphonies, 15 operas, 14 ballet scores and a large body of orchestral, chamber, vocal and instrumental works. He bec ...

's ''Sinfonietta giocosa'' (1940) and ''Sinfonietta La Jolla'' (1950), both for piano and chamber orchestra *

William Mathias William James Mathias CBE (1 November 1934 – 29 July 1992) was a Welsh composer noted for choral works. Biography Mathias was born in Whitland, Carmarthenshire. A child prodigy, he started playing the piano at the age of three and began co ...

's Sinfonietta, Op. 34 (1967) *

Johan de Meij Johannes Abraham "Johan" de Meij (; born November 23, 1953 in Voorburg) is a Dutch conductor, trombonist, and composer, best known for his '' Symphony No. 1'' for wind ensemble, nicknamed ''The Lord of the Rings'' symphony. Biography Johan de ...

's Sinfonietta No. 1 for brass band (2011) * Darius Milhaud's Sinfonietta, Op. 363 (1957) *

E. J. Moeran } Ernest John Smeed Moeran (31 December 1894 – 1 December 1950) was an English composer of part-Irish extraction, whose work was strongly influenced by English and Irish folk music of which he was an assiduous collector. His output includes or ...

's Sinfonietta (1944) *

José Pablo Moncayo José Pablo Moncayo García (June 29, 1912 – June 16, 1958) was a Mexican pianist, percussionist, music teacher, composer and conductor. "As composer, José Pablo Moncayo represents one of the most important legacies of the Mexican nationalis ...

's Sinfonietta (1945) *

Saburō Moroi was a Japanese composer. Life Moroi was self-taught in composition while studying at the Tokyo Imperial University before moving in 1932 to Germany to study in the Berlin University of the Arts, Berlin Musikhochschule under Leo Schrattenholz an ...

's Sinfonietta in B-flat, Op. 24 "For Children" (1943) * Nikolai Myaskovsky's Sinfonietta No. 1 for small orchestra, Op. 10 (1911), No. 2 for string orchestra, Op. 32 No. 2 (1929) and No. 3 for string orchestra, Op. 68 (1946) * Ottokar Nováček's Sinfonietta for woodwind octet (1905) * Krzysztof Penderecki's Sinfonietta No. 1 for string orchestra (1992), No. 2 for clarinet and strings (1994), No. 3 for string orchestra (2012) and Sinfonietta for flute and string orchestra (2019) * George Perle's Sinfonietta I (1987) and II (1990) * Astor Piazzolla's Sinfonietta for chamber orchestra, Op. 19 *

Walter Piston Walter Hamor Piston, Jr. (January 20, 1894 – November 12, 1976), was an American composer of classical music, music theorist, and professor of music at Harvard University. Life Piston was born in Rockland, Maine at 15 Ocean Street to Walter Ha ...

's Sinfonietta (1941) *

Francis Poulenc Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc (; 7 January 189930 January 1963) was a French composer and pianist. His compositions include songs, solo piano works, chamber music, choral pieces, operas, ballets, and orchestral concert music. Among the best-kno ...

's Sinfonietta (1947) *

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, p ...

's Sinfonietta in A major, Op. 5 (1909, rev. 1929 as Op. 48) *

's Sinfonietta for ten winds, Op. 188 (1874) *

Max Reger Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilian Reger (19 March 187311 May 1916) was a German composer, pianist, organist, conductor, and academic teacher. He worked as a concert pianist, as a musical director at the Paulinerkirche, Leipzig, Leipzig University ...

's Sinfonietta in A major, Op. 90 (1904-05) * Wallingford Riegger's Sinfonietta (1959) *

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov . At the time, his name was spelled Николай Андреевичъ Римскій-Корсаковъ. la, Nicolaus Andreae filius Rimskij-Korsakov. The composer romanized his name as ''Nicolas Rimsk ...

's Sinfonietta on Russian Themes in A minor, Op. 31 (1879-84) *

Julius Röntgen Julius Engelbert Röntgen (9 May 1855 – 13 September 1932) was a German-Dutch composer of classical music. He was a friend of Liszt, Brahms and Grieg. Life Julius Röntgen was born in Leipzig, Germany, to a family of musicians. His father, ...

's Sinfonietta humoristica (1922) *

Albert Roussel Albert Charles Paul Marie Roussel (; 5 April 1869 – 23 August 1937) was a French composer. He spent seven years as a midshipman, turned to music as an adult, and became one of the most prominent French composers of the interwar period. His ...

's Sinfonietta for string orchestra, Op. 52 (1934) * Edmund Rubbra's Sinfonietta for large string orchestra, Op. 163 (1984–85) *

Cyril Scott Cyril Meir Scott (27 September 1879 – 31 December 1970) was an English composer, writer, poet, and occultist. He created around four hundred musical compositions including piano, violin, cello concertos, symphonies, and operas. He also wrot ...

's Sinfonietta for organ, harp and strings (1962) * Humphrey Searle's Sinfonietta, Op. 49, for flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn, violin, viola, cello, and double bass (1968–69) *

Kazimierz Serocki Kazimierz Serocki (3 March 1922 – 9 January 1981) was a Polish composer and one of the founders of the Warsaw Autumn contemporary music festival. Life Serocki was born in Toruń. He studied composition with Kazimierz Sikorski and piano wi ...

's Sinfonietta for 2 string orchestras (1956) * Vissarion Shebalin's Sinfonietta on Russian folksongs, Op. 43 (1949-51) *

Nikos Skalkottas Nikos Skalkottas ( el, Νίκος Σκαλκώτας; 21 March 1904 – 19 September 1949) was a Greek composer of 20th-century classical music. A member of the Second Viennese School, he drew his influences from both the classical repert ...

's Sinfonietta (1948-49) *

Carlos Surinach Carlos Lund (or Carles Suriñach)
i Wrokona (; March 6, 1915 – November 12, 1997) was a Spanish-born

's ''Sinfonietta flamenca'' (1953–54) *

Germaine Tailleferre Germaine Tailleferre (; born Marcelle Germaine Taillefesse; 19 April 18927 November 1983) was a French composer and the only female member of the group of composers known as ''Les Six''. Biography Marcelle Germaine Taillefesse was born at Sai ...

's Symphonietta for trumpet, tympani and strings (1974-75) *

Alexandre Tansman Alexander Tansman ( pl, Aleksander Tansman, link=no, French: Alexandre Tansman; 12 June 1897 – 15 November 1986) was a Polish composer, pianist and conductor who became a naturalized French citizen in 1938. One of the earliest representatives of ...

's Sinfonietta No. 1, "À mon ami Louis Gruenberg" (1924) and Sinfonietta No. 1, "À Renard Czajkowski" (1978) * Boris Tchaikovsky's Sinfonietta for string orchestra (1953) * Mikis Theodorakis's Sinfonietta for solo flute, piano and string orchestra (1947) *

Ernst Toch Ernst Toch (; 7 December 1887 – 1 October 1964) was an Austrian composer of classical music and film scores. He sought throughout his life to introduce new approaches to music. Biography Toch was born in Leopoldstadt, Vienna, into the family ...

's Sinfonietta for string orchestra, Op. 96 (1964), Sinfonietta for wind instruments and percussion, Op. 97 (1964) *

Eduard Tubin Eduard Tubin ( – 17 November 1982) was an Estonian composer, conductor, and choreographer. Life Tubin was born in Torila, Tartu County, Governorate of Livonia, then part of the Russian Empire. Both his parents were music lovers, and his fat ...

's ''Sinfonietta on Estonian Motifs'' (1940) *

Geirr Tveitt Geirr Tveitt (born Nils Tveit; 19 October 1908 – 1 February 1981) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. Tveitt was a central figure of the national movement in Norwegian cultural life during the 1930s. Life Early years Tveitt was born in Be ...

's ''Sinfonietta di Soffiatori'' (1962) *

Erich Urbanner Erich Urbanner (born 26 March 1936) is an Austrian composer and teacher. Biography Born in Innsbruck, Urbanner studied from 1955 to 1961 at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna, in the composition classes of Karl Schiske and Hanns ...

's ''Sinfonietta 79'' *

Anatol Vieru Anatol Vieru (; 8 June 1926 – 8 October 1998) was a Romanian-Jewish music theoretician, pedagogue, and composer. A pupil of Aram Khachaturian, he composed seven symphonies, eight string quartets, concertos, and chamber music. He also wrote t ...

's Sinfonietta (1975) *

Heitor Villa-Lobos Heitor Villa-Lobos (March 5, 1887November 17, 1959) was a Brazilian composer, conductor, cellist, and classical guitarist described as "the single most significant creative figure in 20th-century Brazilian art music". Villa-Lobos has become the ...

's Sinfonietta No. 1 (1916) and Sinfonietta No. 2 (1947) * Johan Wagenaar's Sinfonietta (1916) *

Graham Waterhouse Graham Waterhouse (born 2 November 1962) is an English composer and cellist who specializes in chamber music. He has composed a cello concerto, ''Three Pieces for Solo Cello'' and ''Variations for Cello Solo'' for his own instrument, and string ...

's Sinfonietta for string orchestra, Op. 54 (2002) * Franz Waxman's Sinfonietta for string orchestra and timpani *

Mieczysław Weinberg Mieczysław Weinberg (8 December 1919 – 26 February 1996) was a Polish-born Soviet composer and pianist. Names Much confusion has been caused by different renditions of the composer's names. In official Polish documents made before he mov ...

's Sinfonietta No. 1, Op. 41 (1948) and Sinfonietta No. 2 for string orchestra and timpani, Op. 74 (1960) *

Felix Weingartner Paul Felix Weingartner, Edler von Münzberg (2 June 1863 – 7 May 1942) was an Austrian conductor, composer and pianist. Life and career Weingartner was born in Zara, Dalmatia, Austria-Hungary (now Zadar, Croatia), to Austrian parents. T ...

's Sinfonietta, Op. 83 (1932) *

John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who wa ...

's Sinfonietta for wind ensemble (1968) * Malcolm Williamson's Sinfonietta (1965) * Alexander von Zemlinsky's Sinfonietta for orchestra, Op. 23 (1934) * Zhu Jian'er's Sinfonietta, Op. 38 (1994) * Matteo Zanetti's Symphonietta for string orchestra (2010)

References

Further reading