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THEINFLUENCEOFARNOLDSCHNBERGSWORKSON
TWENTIETHCENTURYWESTERNCLASSICALARTMUSIC
MICHELLERUDDER,ID#57035
MUSC2010INDEPENDENTSTUDYINMUSIC
MAY10TH,2014
Rudder,1
TABLEOFCONTENTS
ABSTRACT......................................................................................................................................................................3
INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................................................................................4
SCHNBERGTHEEARLYYEARS.................................................................................................................................4
THEEMANCIPATIONOFDISSONANCE.........................................................................................................................5
DODECAPHONYNOTCACOPHONY:AMETHODTOTHEMADNESS............................................................................9
NICHEINFILM.............................................................................................................................................................14
SERIALMUSICSOUNDTRACKS....................................................................................................................................18
CONCLUSION...............................................................................................................................................................21
BIBLIOGRAPHY............................................................................................................................................................23
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ABSTRACT
This expository paper examines the evolution of Arnold Schnbergs music at the turn of the
century; from his increasing use of chromaticism and free atonality, and his experimentation
withnoveltonesandtextures,tohisdevelopmentofthetwelvetoneordodecaphonicmethod
inmusiccomposition;theSecondVienneseSchool.Thetwelvetonetechniqueisdemonstrated
withtheSuiteforPiano,Op.25;Schnbergsfirstpublishedworkusingthemethod.Theinitial
both.Eventoday,thereisawidespreadacknowledgementthatworkswhichevolvedoutofthis
School, referred to as Serialism, are perplexing, difficult to digest, somewhat esoteric and
musicallyelitist.
Contrary to this popular belief, this new music system has established itself in an arena of
popularculturewhichisreadilyconsumedbythemasses.Inthesamewaythatitspredecessors
oftheFirstVienneseSchool(Mozart,Haydn,Beethoven)wereintimatelylinkedtotheopera,
worksdevelopedoutoftechniquesoftheSecondVienneseSchool(Schnberg,Webern,Berg)
havefoundanicheinthefilmindustryandareinfusedinpopularmovieandtelevisionsound
trackstolenddramaticeffect,engageaudiences,supportimageryandconveyawiderangeof
emotion and atmosphere. Specific examples of twelve tone compositions in film scores are
identified in the works of Bradley, Frankel and Goldsmith, renowned film composers, and
brieflyanalysed.
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INTRODUCTION
Bytheendofthe19th century,composershadalreadybeguntheirpushpasttheboundaries
that defined harmony and form in music for the past two centuries. The late Romantic era
heralded the use of effect in music, such that natural sounds in the environment were
mimickedthroughcleveruseofharmonicandmelodicforms,tosupportanimageoridea.In
the early 20th century, influences of east Asia and eastern Europe introduced new tonal and
rhythmic systems, and experimentation with novel sounds and composition techniques was
pursued in an attempt to create that which was never before heard or felt through music.
There was still, however, a predictability and structure that grounded the music to its
traditionalsource.Thiswassoontochange.1
SCHNBERGTHEEARLYYEARS
Arnold Franz Walter Schnberg was born on 13th September, 1874 of Jewish Hungarian
parents,inViennaIIinthethenAustroHungarianEmpire.Hebeganstudyingviolinatageeight
andlatertaughthimselfcompositionbyimitatingtheworksofcomposersthatheplayed,for
examplePleyelandViotti.WhenSchnbergleftschool,uponhisfathersdeath,hefoundajob
asaclericalworkerinasmallprivatebankandpursuedmusicparttimewithtwofriends,David
JosefBachandOskarAdler,withwhomheformedanamateurensembleperformingchamber
musicforviolinandcello.Heevenstartedcomposingquartetsforstringensembles.
1
J. Peter Burkholder, Donald Jay Grout and Claude V. Palisca, A History of Western Music, 8th Edition, (W.W.
NortonandCompany,2009),Chapter31,p.785809.
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Duringthistime,healsojoinedanamateurorchestraconductedbyAlexandervonZemlinsky,
who had distinguished himself at the Vienna Conservatory where Brahms deemed his
compositionsnoteworthy.Zemlinskyprovidedsomeformalinstruction toSchnbergandwas
said to be the only regular teacher he ever had. With valuable feedback from Zemlimsky,
Schnberg completed his First String Quartet in D major in 1897. It was performed in March
Zemlinskys request, and was deemed a success. This was his last truly tonal work, beyond
which incremental steps toward the abandonment of triadic harmony and tonality became
moreevident.2
THEEMANCIPATIONOFDISSONANCE
In1897,SchnbergsFirstStringQuartetinDmajor(Opus0)wascomposedandperformeda
year later. The 1st and 2nd movements are tonal. The 3rd movement hints the beginning of
deviation,however,the4thmovementisdecidedlyclassicallytonal.Publicreceptionissaidto
have been very good; perhaps the last time there was a fully positive audience reaction to
Schnbergsmusic.InDecember1900,publicperformancesofhissongsselectedfromOpus1,
2and3resultedinprotestsand,inSchnbergsownwords,Fromthattimeon,thescandal
neverstopped.2VerklrteNachtOp.4,thestringsextetcomposedin1899,washisfirstmajor
2
OliverW.Neighbour,ArnoldSchoenbergfromTheNewGroveDictionaryofOpera(Biography),OxfordUniversity
Press.n.d.
http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/25024?q=schonberg&search=quick&pos=1&_
start=1#firsthit(accessedMarch2014).
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rejectedbytheTonknstlervereinsjury.Undeterred,hestillmanagedtocompletetheGurre
LiederinApril,1901.In1902,VerklrteNachtwasfinallyperformedbytheRoseQuartetand
membersoftheWienerPhilharmoniker(ViennaPhilharmonicOrchestra).Schnbergisquoted
tohavedescribedthereceptionasPeoplesaiditsoundsasifanorchestraplayingWagners
TristanandIsoldegotconfusedandmixedup.3
In 1907, theKammersymphonie, Op. 9, was performed with the cooperation of the Rose
featured chords built on fourths or quartal harmony, and dissonances without immediate
resolution. This deviation from traditional harmony caused considerable unease among
audiences. His SecondString Quartet, composed in 1908 was his last work that carried a
definite key signature. The first three movements, though tonal, are not traditionally so but
ratherlikethefirstquartet,theexpandedversionoftonalityprevalentinthelate19thcentury
Romantic era. In a novel move, the third and fourth movements include a part for
asopranosinger,MarieGutheilSchoder,usingpoetrywrittenbyGermanpoet,StefanGeorge.
The fourth movement may have been Schnbergs first bold step in the direction of
totalatonality.Ithasnokeysignature,usesextensivechromaticismandclosesonanarbitrary
Fsharpmajorchord.
3ArnoldSchoenberg,StyleandIdea:SelectedWritingsofArnoldSchoenberg,editedbyLeonardStein,(University
ofCaliforniaPress,1984),33.GoogleBooksAccessedFebruary2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=jbXtxJezk5cC
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In February 1909, Schnberg completed Klavierstcke,Op. 11 No. 1, three pieces for piano
whichwashisfirstfullyatonalcomposition.Lookingbackto1909,Schoenberghadthistosay
fortyyearslater
Mytechniqueandstylehavenotbeendevelopedbyaconsciousprocedure.Reviewing
this development today it seems to me that I have moved in many roundabout ways,
sometimesadvancingslowly,sometimesspeedily,sometimesevenfallingbackseveral
steps.ThemostdecisivestepsforwardoccurredintheThreePianoPieces,Op.11,and
intheTwoSongs,Op.14.4
Americanpianist,composerandconductor,DavidBurge,notesthatinOp.11,theschemeof
melodicandrhythmicrelationshipsarenotunusualhavingbeenarticulatedinthismannerby
Wagner, Mahler and Strauss.5The numerous dissonanceswere not even the real source of
disturbanceforlisteners;butrathertheirlackofresolution.Schnbergneverresolvedthem.6
Continuing on this trend, his Five Pieces for Orchestra, FnfOrchesterstcke, which was first
performedinLondoninSeptember1912,receivedthefollowingcritiqueintheLondonTimes
4
Arnold Schoenberg, My Evolution in Style and Idea: Selected Writings of Arnold Schoenberg, by Arnold
Schoenberg, edited by Leonard Stein. (University of California Press, 1984), 86. Google Books accessed March
2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=jbXtxJezk5cC
5DavidBurge,TwentiethCenturyPianoMusic,(NewYork:SchirmerBooks,1990),2432.GoogleBooksaccessed
March2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=E2TAQgAACAAJ
6ArnoldSchoenberg:ThreePianoPieces,Op.11,TheSignificanceofOp.11,2003,accessedMarch2014,
http://www.colleges.org/techcenter/music/modules/op11/op11pages/signif1.html
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ItwaslikeapoeminTibetan;notonesinglesoulcouldpossiblyhaveunderstooditat
first hearing there was not a single consonance from beginning to end. At the
conclusion,halftheaudiencehissed...theotherhalfapplaudedmorevehementlythan
thecasewarranted,foritcouldhardlyhavebeenfromunderstanding.7
Schnbergs"onlylengthyworkinanathematicstyle,wherenomusicalmaterialreturnsonce
statedoverthecourseoffourhundredandtwentysixmeasures.8Schnbergalsocompleted
another innovative work, Pierrot Lunaire, a collection of twentyone German songs with
accompaniment translated from poems by the Belgian poet, Albert Giraud. Again,
experimenting with tone, he replaced standard singing pitch with Sprechstimme, a gliding
soundwithblendedspeechandsingingtones.Criticsvoicedstrongcondemnationofthemusic
whenitwasperformedinOctober1912.
VerylittlewouldbeheardfromSchnbergforthenextdecade.TherewasWorldWarI,where
he was called to service briefly. He was occupied with teaching and conducting and, he was
working on a new approach to composition which would revolutionise music in the 20th
century.
7Richard Hoffman, Oberlin Conservatory. Concert Notes: Five Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 16 (1909; Rev. 1949),
1993,accessedMarch2014,http://americansymphony.org/fivepiecesfororchestraop16/
8 Philip Friedheim, Rhythmic Structure in Schoenberg's Atonal Compositions. Journal of the American
MusicologicalSociety,Spring1966,5972.
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DODECAPHONYNOTCACOPHONY:AMETHODTOTHEMADNESS
AsSchnbergfocussedhiscreativityonmusicwithouttonalharmonicprogressionsormelodic
themes,hefacedseveralproblems.Apartfromdealingwithhiscritics;defendingatonalityand
perhapsattemptingtopresentaclearer,moreintelligibleformat,therewasalsothequestion
ofcreatinglargeworksintheabsenceoftraditionalmusicformslikefuguesorsonataswhose
developmentdependedontonalstructures.Inhissearchforaformalmethodfordeveloping
atonal work, he invented the twelvetone method. In carrying atonality and chromatic
saturationtoitsextreme,Schnbergexperimentedwithcomposingwithalltwelvechromatic
tones in a manner that they were related only to one another rather than a tonic. After
several years during which he published no new music, he presented the twelvetone or
dodecaphonicmethod.
Insummary,thenewunderlyingbackboneofcompositionwouldbeacollectionofthetwelve
chromatic tones. Each composition would have a different collection. The collection would
represent the twelve tones in a specific order called a twelvetone row or twelvetone series
(P0).Thetonerowcouldbetransposed(P111),inverted(I111),retrograded(R111)andthe
retrogradeinverted(RI111)toderivefortyeightnewrowpresentationswhichmayformthe
basisofthecompositionsdevelopment.Thesefortyeightrowsarepresentedin12x12matrix
form.Theapplicationofthetonerowanditsderivativesareasfollows
i. Arowmaybeusedtocreatemelody
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ii. Arowmaybeusedtocreatecounterpoint,eitherbysharingonerowwithtwo
simultaneously.
iii. Arowmaybeusedtocreateharmoniesbyhavingpartsoftherow,ormultiple
rows,soundingsimultaneously.
(two,three,fourorsixnotegroups),oranyothercombination.Thiscanthen
becomeaprimarymeansoforganisingapieceofmusic.9
In1922,SchnbergbeganworkonhisSuiteforPiano,Op.25,whichwastobehisfirstpiece
deliberatelycomposedusingthetwelvetonemethod.SuiteforPianoconsistssixmovements.
The first three measures of the Prelude are shown in Figure 1. The tone row is shown in the
trebleasthefirsttwelvenotes.
Figure1
9PhillipMagnuson,SoundPatterns:AStructuralExaminationofTonality,Vocabulary,Texture,Sonorities,and
TimeOrganizationinWesternArtMusic,Chapter45:Serialism,2008,accessedMarch2014,
http://academic.udayton.edu/PhillipMagnuson/soundpatterns/microcosms/serialism.html
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Thebasictwelvetonerow(P0)anditsmatrixaredetailledbelow.
I0 I1 I3 I9 I2 I11 I4 I10 I7 I8 I5 I6
RI0 RI1 RI3 RI9 RI2 RI11 RI4 RI10 RI7 RI8 RI5 RI6
TWELVETONEMATRIX
In the first three measures, there is also a counterpoint using the transposed tone row, P6,
which is P0 transposed six semitones. Notes 5 to 12 of the P6 series are presented as two
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tetrachordsplayedsimultaneouslytocreateharmony(SeeFigure2);atetrachordbeingagroup
offourconsecutivenotesinatonerow.
Figure2
IntheGavotte,Figure3,weseethebasictonerow,P0,andtheinversionofP6,I6,inthefirst
threemeasures.
Figure3
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TheMinuet(showninFigure4)similarlystartsoffwiththebasictonerow,P0,withtetrachords
measures,thetonerowI6andtheinversionofP6arepresentedintwotetrachords912and
58.R6,theretrogradeofP6,isalsopresentedintwotetrachords14and58.
Figure4
FurtheranalysisofthisSuiteshowstheconsistentuseofP0,thesixsemitonetransposition,P6,
anditsinversionandretrogradeinversions,I6,R6andRI6,asaunifyingfactorthroughoutthe
suite.ManyphrasesstartonEborBbandendonGorDb.Thisisadeliberateattempttobring
coherencetothemusic,andwasseenasanalogoustostayingonkey.Thismethodisalsoused
inBaroquekeyboardsuites,however,itismoredifficulttodiscerninthiscase.10
AnotherfeatureofSchnbergsinthisSuiteistheuseoftetrachordsasmotifunitsinamanner
similartosetsorcellsinfreeatonalmusic.Ingeneralthree,fourorsixnotesetswerebroken
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offtocreatemotifsandtheseweremanipulatedtocreatepseudoCanonsandFugues.Ofnote
isthatinusingthesesets,alltwelvepitchesmuststillsoundbeforeanynoteisrepeatedunless
therepeatisimmediate,orinatrillortremolo.
Schnberg also used the transpositions of the tone row, P1 P11, as the equivalent of
modulationsintonalmusic.Heextendedthisideathroughthecreationofregionsmadeupof
eachtransposition,itsinversionandtheirretrogrades.Eachregionwouldbetreatedasakey,
with the region a fifth higher being the dominant region. This method can be seen in his
FourthStringQuartetasanalogoustomodulationinasonatafordevelopment.10
NICHEINFILM
Schnbergs music may be divided into four periods. The first is tonal, though not in the
classicalperiodsenseastheRomanticorImpressionisterahadalreadyintroduceddeviations
fromstandardharmonicprogressionsandtheuseoftexturestosupportimagery.Thisperiodis
pre1900totheturnofthecentury.Thesecondperiod,hisExpressionistphase,analogousto
style of Art during that era, started around 1908 when he became the first composer to
abandoned standard tonality. The music of this phase is occasionally referred to as atonal,
whichSchnbergviewedwithsomecontempt,preferringtodescribethemusicaspantonal;
spanning many keys. During this time, he explored the foundations of serialism where
movementofthemusic,ratherthanrecurringthemes,formedthebasisofcompositionandhis
10
J. Peter Burkholder, Donald Jay Grout and Claude V. Palisca, A History of Western Music, 8th Edition, (W.W.
NortonandCompany,2009),820821.
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works had no key signature. From 1920 to the mid1930s, the Serialism phase, he developed
andemployedastructurewithinwhichatonalmusicwaswrittenthetwelvetonetechnique,
which expanded the use of chromaticism to the point that nonkey tones were no longer
accidental,butofequalimportance.Schnbergsfourthperiod,fromabout1936onward,was
morediversewithoccasionaluseoftonalcomposition.11
Therewascontinuingdebateoverthevalidityofhistwelvetoneapproach;somelikeningitina
musicscholar,MichaelHicks,postulatesserialmusicisbyitsnaturecognitivelyopaque.
While this cognitive opacity does not mean that every serial piece is necessarily a bad piece,
itsaestheticisdoubtful.Ifapiececannotbeunderstood,heasks,howcanitbegood?13
Musiccritic,GeorgeRochberg,maintainsthattheabsenceofperiodicstructureintwelvetone
orserialmusicmakesitdifficult,orevenimpossible,toremember.Hestates
The broad, identifiable changes in music as we move from the eighteenth and
nineteenthcentury,totheearlydecadesofthetwentiethcenturyandthentothemusic
of the fifties and sixties, can be characterised in innumerable ways. The one that
11Oliver Neighbour, The New Grove Second Viennese School: Schoenberg, Webern, Berg, (W. W. Norton &
Company,1997),Chapter2.
12Arnold Schoenberg, My Evolution in Style and Idea: Selected Writings of Arnold Schoenberg, by Arnold
Schoenberg,editedbyLeonardStein.(UniversityofCaliforniaPress,1984),8692.GoogleBooksaccessedMarch
2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=jbXtxJezk5cC&lr=
13MichaelHicks,SerialismandComprehensibility:AGuidefortheTeacherJournalofAestheticEducation,Vol.
25,No.4,Winter1991,7585.GoogleBooksaccessedMarch2014,
https://cfac.byu.edu/music/serialismandcomprehensibilityaguidefortheteacher/
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particular way, has to do with the decreasing profile of identity of thematic and
harmoniccontent.Thisdecreasingprofileofidentitycouldbegraphedinaroughsort
ofway,movingfromamusicwithpreciseidentities(Bach,Haydn,Mozart,Beethoven,
Schoenberg)toamusicwithamarkeddeclineinitsprofileofidentity(theatonaland
twelvetoneworksofSchoenberg,Webern,Berg,lateScriabin,Ives)toamusicentirely
lackinginanyaurallymeaningful,identifiablecharacteristics(e.g.postWebernserialist
worksofBoulez)...Inshort,fromamusicthatcanberemembered,toamusicwhich
canberememberedbutwithvaryingdegreesofdifficulty,andfinallytoamusicwhich
utterly(oralmost)defiesmemory.14
Ifthemusiccannotberemembered,thenitsvalueisinthemoment,atthatmoment.Inwhat
context,therefore,couldserialmusicholdmostvalue?Therewasoneeventthathintedatthe
roleserialmusiccouldplayinthefuture;SchnbergsBegleitungsmusikzueinerLichtspielszene
(Accompaniment to a Film Scene) Op. 34, composed in 1930, which was commissioned for a
cinemamusiclibrarybyHeinrichshofen'sVerlag,asilentfilmproducer.
Thehistoryofthefilmindustrydatestheearlystagestotheturnofthecentury,from1895to
1930. This, the silentfilm era, was not really silent because music was always used to
accompany the pictures. There was first the practical purpose of masking background
14George Rochberg, The Aesthetics of Survival: A Composer's View of Twentiethcentury Music. (University of
MichiganPress,1984),Pg.39.GoogleBooksaccessedMarch2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=k0xjK0iaMz4C
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productionnoises,butitmayhavealsobeenusedtocreatethemoodfortheactoraswellas
allaynormalhumandiscomfortwiththesilenceanddarknessofthemovietheatre.15Earlyin
the century, film music was simple piano accompaniment, albeit with outoftune pianos and
variablyskilled musicians. As technology developed along with the physical movie theatre
space,filmlengthsgrewandwithit,thedemandformorecontroloveritsaccompanyingmusic.
By 1929, movie production houses were investing in songwriters, composers and music
publishing houses. Paramount was the first to own a music publishing company, generating
revenueswithitsfilmmusicandWarnerBrotherspurchasedtheoriginalTinPanAlleyhouse.
The music also developed from live accompaniment to recorded sound tracks synchronised
with the motion picture.16It is in this context that Opus 34 was commissioned. It consists of
usedascuesforrelatedscenes,andisnotknowntohavebeenactuallyusedasasoundtrack.
George Burt, film music composer, opines that the serial music is effective in situations
requiring musical intensity, and there is widespread belief that appropriate scenes are those
containingcatastrophesorneuroticbehaviour.Opus34mayhavehelpedpropagatethatbelief.
15Pauline Reay, Music in Film: Soundtracks and Synergy, (Wallflower Press, 2004), Pg. 5 7. Google Books
accessedMarch2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=sAZ8auEjIoAC&redir_esc=y
16Pauline Reay, Music in Film: Soundtracks and Synergy, (Wallflower Press, 2004), Pg. 5 7. Google Books
accessedMarch2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=sAZ8auEjIoAC&redir_esc=y
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It is ironic, therefore, that twelvetone music made its film debut not in a thriller or horror
movie,butinacomedycartoon.17,18
SERIALMUSICSOUNDTRACKS
To escape the tensions involving the Jews in Europe in the lead up to World War II,
DuringWorldWarII,SchnbergmigratedtotheUnitedStates,firstBostonthensettlinginLos
Angelesin1934.HelivedthereduringtheHollywoodGoldenEraandheldateachingposition
atUniversityofSouthernCaliforniaandaprofessorshipatUniversityofCaliforniaLosAngeles.
Healsoprovidedprivatetutelageincomposition.Heisknowntohaveinfluencedmanyyoung
filmcomposers,notablyScottBradley,JerryGoldsmith,DavidRaskin,LeonardRosenmanmand
BenjaminFrankel,someofwhomhetutored19.
ScottBradleycomposedforMetroGoldwynMayer.In1944,hewasthefirsttouseatwelve
tone series to create chase music for a particular scene in the HannaBarbera Tom and Jerry
cartoon,PuttingontheDog.Chasemusicinmovieswasgenerallysimplisticallyrepresentedas
agitatedmusic.Inthespecificscene,Jerrythemousewasrunningaroundwithalargemaskof
a dogs head over his own, a strange but funny image. Bradley is said to have experimented
with different melodic and harmonic lines without accomplishing his intended effect. He was
17GeorgeBurt,TheArtofFilmMusic:SpecialEmphasisonHugoFriedhofer,AlexNorth,DavidRaksin,Leonard
Rosenman,(UPNE,1994),Pg.48.GoogleBooksaccessedApril2014,
http://books.google.tt/books?id=4E9EdlJw_N8C
18David Huckvale, Hammer Film Scores and the Musical AvanteGarde, (McFarland, 2008), 27. Google Books
accessedMarch2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=NSQQxD2EO0C
19Mervyn Cooke, The Hollywood Film Reader, (Oxford University Press, 2010), Pg. 273. Google Books accessed
April2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=FhUZ4nphj58C
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challengedtorepresentthatimagemusically.Heisquotedashavingsaid...forawholedayI
worried about a twomeasure phrase. Everything I tried seemed weak and common. Finally I
triedatwelvetonescaleandthereitwas!.IhopeDr.Schoenbergwillforgivemeforusinghis
system to create funny music, but even the boys in the orchestra laughed when we were
recording it.20This brief episode where twelvetone made its film debut can be heard on
YouTube;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9MNBqQGEgIat3:37.
Renowned twentieth century British composer, Benjamin Frankel, also did extensive
compositionintwelvetoneforthe1960film,TheCurseoftheWerewolf.Themoviesopening
scene shows a close up of the face of actor, Oliver Reed, in full werewolf costume. The
accompanyingmusicismeanttocreateanatmosphereofhorror,painandsufferingevidentin
theexpressionsofthewerewolfsfaceandthetearsthatescapehiseyes.Thetonerowupon
whichthismusicisbasedisshowninFigure5.Itcontainstwoareasoftonalelementsinthe4
56and567trichords,whichareGminorandBbMajortriads.21
Figure5.
20DanielGoldmark,Tunesfor'Toons':MusicandtheHollywoodCartoon,(UniversityofCaliforniaPress,2005),62
70.GoogleBooksaccessedMarch2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=Rz2WJ_NxsAC
21DavidHuckvale,HammerFilmScoresandtheMusicalAvanteGarde,(McFarland,2008),2748.GoogleBooks
accessedMarch2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=NSQQxD2EO0C
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David Huckvale, Film Music professor at State university of New York, provides a concise
analysisofthefilmscoreinhisbook,HammerFilmScoresandtheMusicalAvanteGarde.
Continuingonthehorrormovietrend,JerryGoldsmith,Americanfilmcomposerandconductor,
produced serial works for both The Omen and Alien, popular Hollywood horror movies.
Goldsmithsbiggestfilmworksatthattime,wasforthemoviePlanetoftheApes.Buildingon
thatexperience,hecreatedforAlienwhatJonBurlingame,aleadingwriteronthesubjectof
music for films and television, calls one of his most complex, eerie and intense work.22The
mainthemeisbasedonthetwelvetonerowshowninFigure6.Itdoesnotadherestrictlyto
therepetitionrulethoughsomerepeatsmaybeviewedasaslowtremolo.Theactualopening
score is shown in Figure 7. The main themes music can be heard on YouTube;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaTJX5r8i8.
Figure6
22MatthewJ.Bartkowiak,SoundsoftheFuture:EssaysonMusicinScienceFictionFilm,(McFarland,2010),219.
GoogleBooksaccessedMarch2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=NSQQxD2EO0C
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Figure7
CONCLUSION
These are just a few of the many examples of serial music in film. Its use has become so
common that serial music may very well be more familiar to cinema goers than concert hall
audiences. It is astonishing that audiences readily accept the music in movies, but reject the
ideaoflisteningtoitsconcertperformances.Areasonforthismaybethatinfilm,theaudience
isnotcompelledtolistentothemusic.Thefocusisonthetheatricalscene.Themusicisajust
auralrenderingofthescenewhichenhancestheviewersexperience.23
23DanielGoldmark,Tunesfor'Toons':MusicandtheHollywoodCartoon,(UniversityofCaliforniaPress,2005),62
70.GoogleBooksaccessedMarch2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=Rz2WJ_NxsAC
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Whatisitaboutthenatureofserialmusicthatlendsitselfparticularlytothispurpose?Isitthe
immediacyof the music, the dissonance and lack of tonal identity? Those key features which
makeserialmusicunappealingtothetraditionalclassicallytrainedearmaybeexactlywhatfilm
musiccomposersexploit.24Theprogressionofthemusic,withitsspontaneity,unpredictability,
tension,deliberateavoidanceofrepetition,andunderlying,imperceptiblelaws,imitateslifes
motion. No scene repeats itself in the same way no phrase of the music would, and each
momentisasdifferentasitisimportant.Itssuccessfulapplicationinfilm,arepresentationof
life,isevidenceofthis.
IfArtmimicsLife,Schnbergsmajorcontributiontotwentiethcenturymusicmayverywellby
therevolutionarymethodofdodecaphoniccomposition;thatcontroversialbreakthroughthat
brought the musical arts on that path of closer synergy with the nature of life itself. In
Schnbergsownwords,ontheemancipationofdissonance
Everychord,then,thatissetbesidetheprincipletonehasatleastasmuchtendencyto
leadawayfromitastoreturntoit.Andiflife,ifaworkofArt,istoemergethenwe
danger of losing its sovereignty; the appetites for independence and the tendencies
towardmutinymustbegiventheopportunitytoactivatethemselves.25
24Simon Frith, Performing Rites: On the Value of Popular Music, (Harvard University Press, 1998), 106. Google
BooksaccessedApril2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=BPdIfT6scIoC
25CharlotteMarieCrossandRussellA.Berman,SchoenbergandWords:TheModernistYears,(Taylor&Francis,
2000),292.GoogleBooksaccessedMay2014,http://books.google.tt/books?id=c7TTh2HdbjcC
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
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