Miniature XIV is pretty emblematic of the miniatures as a series of works. It is on one page, it contains a simple accompanying motif and melody, repeat sign is there, and it has the kinds of progressions I like to wander through when writing tonal music. What then separates this Miniature from the rest of the series? For me, it is that back and forth between that Eb and E in the opening motif. It’s minor! Now it’s major for a moment! Back to minor! That kind of modal mixing very easily leads to some nice dissonances. It is ultimately tonal, meaning that C is the center of all the tonal wandering, but it is finding a different way to move away from that center and find a satisfying way back. The ritard at the end is really necessary to emphasize both the melodic direction and the final chords after E natural and B natural resolve to E flat and C.
This may sound a little strange, but I don’t usually keep track of the key signatures of these Miniatures. They are usually composed individually and maybe other than general aesthetic, I don’t compare them back to back. Except when I notice it! After I finished writing this particular Miniature, I discovered that two movements are in C, three in E, and one in A. I can say for sure that the next two Miniatures will not be in any of those key centers.
PS: the title can be roughly translated as “gone into the darkness.” I don’t think of darkness as implicitly bad, but in the context of looking into the night sky in complete darkness. Having grown up in Alaska, I really miss those skies filled with stars. That is what I was truly thinking of when composing this Miniature.
Download the score for Miniature XIV on IMSLP here!