Minimalist music is a form of art music that employs limited or minimal instruments, melody, harmony, counterpoint, etc. Perhaps its most distinctive feature is the complete absence of extended melodic lines, with only very brief, if any, discernible melodic segments. Sound sources can range from a single instrument or other items (such as drinking glasses, blocks of wood, antique gongs, or even flowing water) all the way to large, conventional orchestras. Examples include compositions that use only a few, or limited range of, notes, that move very gradually from one genre of music to another, that slow the tempo down to just a few notes per minute, and that consist exclusively of recordings of animal or other natural sounds.
Although minimalist music was initially viewed as a form of experimental music when it originated in the New York City in the 1960s, it continued to grow in influence and subsequently came to dominate the composing of art music. Minimalism has taken root in other areas as well during the same period, including the visual arts (e.g. painting, sculpture and architecture), and even lifestyle, although the relationship to minimalism in music is not clear.
Minimalism remains highly controversial. Although many people fine it interesting, and perhaps even enjoyable, others consider it simplistic, boring, or even annoying. Some critics suggest that its best use is as background music for advertisements or documentaries, but not something that most people would want to endure for hours in a concert hall. Some detractors have compared it to advertising and even to the politics in some totalitarian countries because of its often highly repetitive and seemingly simplistic nature.
The reasons for the current ascendency of minimalism are not clear. One possibility is that composers find it particularly interesting to explore because of its newness. A second is that, like many people, many composers like to follow the current fashions and may even feel peer pressure to do so. Composing true classical music might make them be considered old fashioned.
Yet another reason is that it might be much easier to write music that does not contain any melody and which is highly repetitive. Creating good melodies as well as the appropriate harmonies and variations as well as the counterpoint necessary for a great work is an extremely difficult, labor-intensive and time-consuming task, and throughout the history of Western music very few composers have had the ability to do so on a consistent basis. In contrast, modern computer technology has made it relatively easy to create music that is highly repetitive, although it is much less useful for creating beautiful melodies, melodic development and counterpoint.
Moreover, the writing of melodic music is apparently no longer encouraged in academia, and, in fact, it is often actively discouraged. This could be related to the fact that there are no longer many, if any, great composers of melodic music who could teach students of music composition. This is in sharp contrast to the situation in the 19th and early 20th centuries, when many students were able to study under the tutelage of the great masters.
Among the pioneers in the development of minimalist music were Steve Reich and Philip Glass. Among the best known minimalist works is the latter's 1976 opera Einstein On The Beach.