Full Description
When Arnold Schoenberg revealed his new method of twelve-tone composition it was considered a revolutionary idea, and it has proved to be one of the most influential ideas in the history of music which even Stravinsky, his former rival, adopted in his works during the 1950s. Drawing upon Schoenberg's papers, sketches and manuscripts as well as the published scores, this book traces the development of his twelve-tone serial idea from its rudimentary beginnings in 1914 to the highly refined works of his mature twelve-tone period, discussing its evolution and Schoenberg's refinement of the technique. In this book the author reveals that Schoenberg, with merciless self-criticism, sought ways to transform his idea until it embraced the motives, phrases, harmony, melody, metre, developing variation and form of his music.
Contents
The twelve-tone odyssey; Schoenberg's mature twelve-tone style; before the beginning - "Die Jakobsleiter" and other incomplete compositions, 1914-1918; the formation of the twelve-tone idea, 1920-1923; ambitious projects - "The Wind Quintet Op 6" and "The Suite Op 29", 1923-1926; further refinements - "The Choral Pieces Opp 27 and 28", 1925; the art of the twelve-tone composition - "The String Quartet No 3" and the "Variations for Orchestra", 1926-1928. Epilogue: Op 32 and beyond.
