Novelette was composed following a meeting with pianist Reinild Mees, who, together with violinist Isabelle van Keulen, was looking for a new work for violin and piano.

Although Novelette is a single-movement composition, it can clearly be divided into sections that differ markedly in atmosphere and intention. Because the entire work is constructed from the same pitch material, its overall unity remains intact throughout. In the first and last of the four sections, numerical structures underlie the formal design, allowing phrases to expand and contract. This process is especially audible in the final section (quasi una cadenza). The very last note of this section, F-sharp, gradually increases in duration until it becomes an almost infinitely sustained tone, eventually dissolving into silence.

Often, a long sustained note in the violin is followed by a scratch tone. This effect is produced by applying increased pressure with the bow on the string while simultaneously accelerating the bow toward the end of the crescendo. At the climax of the crescendo, the bow is abruptly brought to a halt on the string.

Novelette opens with a dry (secco) piano chord that already contains the germ of the pitch material from which the entire work is derived. Through a process governed by numerical structures, this chord is gradually transformed from a vertical sonority into a horizontal one, slowly developing into a melodic shape. This opening section, focused on growth and transformation, is followed by a more static and tranquil passage. A highly rhythmic section then ensues, culminating in a quasi-cadenza that acts as a catalyst, bringing the tension accumulated in the preceding section to a standstill.

In essence, the work follows a fairly classical pattern of tension and release: the first section is dynamic, the second static, the third dynamic, and the fourth static.

— Willem Jeths