Schoenberg and the New Music

Schoenberg and the New Music collects essays by musicologist Carl Dahlhaus examining Arnold Schoenberg's compositions and theoretical writings. The essays analyze Schoenberg's twelve-tone method, his philosophical approach to composition, and his place in twentieth-century music history. The book addresses key developments in musical modernism through detailed studies of specific works and compositional techniques. Dahlhaus connects Schoenberg's innovations to broader cultural and aesthetic debates of the early 1900s while providing technical analysis of musical structures. Dahlhaus examines the reception and influence of Schoenberg's ideas on subsequent composers and musical thought. The text includes discussions of atonal music, expressionism in music, and the relationship between tradition and innovation. These writings present a complex portrait of Schoenberg as both revolutionary and traditionalist, exploring tensions between radical innovation and historical continuity in twentieth-century art music. The essays reveal how theoretical frameworks shape our understanding of musical meaning and historical change.

Readers find this book dense and complex, aimed at readers with advanced music theory knowledge. Many appreciate Dahlhaus's thorough analysis of Schoenberg's compositional techniques and philosophical perspectives. Likes: - Detailed examination of twelve-tone composition methods - Strong theoretical foundation for understanding modern music - In-depth exploration of historical context Dislikes: - Academic writing style makes concepts hard to grasp - Translation from German creates awkward phrasing - Assumes significant prior knowledge - Limited accessibility for non-specialists Online Ratings: Goodreads: 4.0/5 (8 ratings) Amazon: No reviews available WorldCat: No ratings available One Goodreads reviewer notes: "Best read with scores in hand and a piano nearby to work through examples." Another mentions: "The dense prose requires multiple readings to fully grasp the concepts." Most academic reviewers recommend this for graduate-level music students and scholars rather than general readers interested in Schoenberg.

Style and Idea by Arnold Schoenberg The composer's collected writings present theoretical concepts and philosophical perspectives on twentieth-century composition methods and modernist approaches to music.

The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century by Alex Ross This analysis traces the development of classical music through the twentieth century, connecting musical innovations to cultural and historical movements.

Philosophy of Modern Music by Theodor Adorno The text examines the theoretical foundations of modern music through detailed analysis of Schoenberg and Stravinsky's compositions and their impact on musical thought.

Structural Functions of Harmony by Arnold Schoenberg This technical examination of harmonic principles presents Schoenberg's systematic approach to understanding tonal relationships and their evolution into modern compositional methods.

Serial Composition and Atonality by George Perle The book provides analysis of twelve-tone composition techniques and their development through the works of the Second Viennese School and beyond.

🎵 Carl Dahlhaus was one of the most influential musicologists of the 20th century, writing over 25 books during his career at the Technical University of Berlin 📚 The book was originally published in German as "Schönberg und andere" (1978) before being translated to English in 1987 by Derrick Puffett and Alfred Clayton 🎼 While focused on Schoenberg, the book also provides crucial analysis of other modernist composers like Berg, Webern, and Stockhausen, placing them in historical context 🎹 Dahlhaus challenges the common perception that Schoenberg's twelve-tone technique was a radical break from tradition, arguing instead that it was a natural evolution of Germanic musical thought 🗣️ The book's essays were written over several years and tackle not just musical analysis but also aesthetics, philosophy of music, and the changing role of composition in the 20th century