Bartók divided this set into three books; originally he wanted four but was dissuaded from that grouping by his publisher. Book I consists of Nos. 1 through 4, while the second contains Nos. 5 through 8, and the last is made up solely of No. 9, the most substantial and longest. The title of the work may mislead some into thinking these are just another set of easy, rather simple pieces by Bartók, like those in his many sets of folk tune arrangements. The Little Piano Pieces (9) are works whose expressive language is deep and pianistic execution difficult, most notably because of its considerable digital demands.

The first piece (Moderato) opens serenely and presents its material in highly imaginative contrapuntal writing. There are more than a few echoes of Bach to be heard here, and for that matter, in the next piece as well. In fact, all the works in Book I feature contrapuntal styles. Marked Andante, but sounding much faster, No. 2 is a bit more somber than its predecessor, and somewhat agitated, too. The third piece is marked Lento and features a dreamy gloom as it seems to wander up and down the keyboard. The last work in Book I is lively (Allegro vivace) and also recalls the contrapuntal spirit of Bach. Again, its manner is sober and dry, seeming to augur the style of Shostakovich's Preludes and Fugues (24).

Book II opens with a humorous mechanistic minuet (Moderato), not as cold as the music in the second movement of Bartók's Piano Concerto No. 1 (1926), but having much the same percussive manner and robotic character. The ensuing Air (Allegro) is charming in its lighthearted bustle and herky-jerky manner. The "Marcia del bestie" that follows, marked Comodo, looks back somewhat to the machine-like character of No. 5, but is more animated and features, if oxymorons can be conjured, a graceful oafishness. It has rightly been compared with Bartók's Bear Dance (from Easy Pieces (10); 1908). The last piece in Book II, "Tambourine," marked Allegro molto, is oddly rhythmic, using the keyboard for fast drumming and other coloristic and percussive effects.

The final book's lone work is the Preludio—All' Ungherese, which moves from a Moderato marking in the first half to lively tempos (Allegro non troppo; molto ritmico) in the second half. It begins with a menacing rhythmic idea that is followed by a complex folk-like theme of heroic character. In the latter half, this melody transforms, first becoming lively and muscular—retaining its Hungarian flavors though—then turning manic and ecstatic for the brilliant close. This piece lasts about three-and-a-half minutes in performance, while the other eight have durations of a minute to two minutes each, the whole set timing out to about 15 minutes. This effort must be assessed as one of the composer's more important collections of piano pieces.

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