Sechs Kleine Klavierstücke
Encyclopedia
Sechs kleine Klavierstücke, Op. 19 (or Six Little Piano Pieces) is a set of pieces for solo piano
written by the Austria
n composer
Arnold Schoenberg
, published in 1913.
, up until 1907, Schönberg decided to turn away from this style, beginning with his second string quartet of 1908. The following excerpt, translated from a letter written to Ferruccio Busoni
in 1909, well expresses his reaction against the excess of the Romantic period
:
Interestingly, this work was composed at the same time that Schönberg was working on his orchestration of his massive Gurre-Lieder
. While he maintained a lifelong love of Romantic music, the extreme contrast between his Klavierstücke and his more romantic works comes from his modernist
desire to find a new means of expression. For him, works like the Gurre-Lieder or Verklärte Nacht
fulfilled the tradition he loved, but it was works like these Klavierstücke, or the Fünf Orchesterstücke
that attempted to reach beyond it.
The first five pieces were written in a single day, February 11, 1911. The sixth and concluding piece was written on June 17, shortly after the death of Gustav Mahler
. Indeed, it is a, "well circulated claim that Schoenberg conceived op. 19/vi as a tombeau to Mahler". It was first performed on February 4, 1912 in Berlin, by Louis Closson.
aesthetic, each piece can be understood to be a long composition condensed into a single brief miniature. Schoenberg regarded this style of writing as a necessary compositional reaction to the diminishing power of tonality and this compositional style would be a huge influence on Schoenberg's pupil, Anton Webern
, whose works are well known for their brevity. The work is atonal
, or at least any resemblance to tonality is fleeting, but it predates Schoenberg's later dodecaphonic
development. The six pieces do not carry individual names, but are often known by their tempo
marking:
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
written by the Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg was an Austrian composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School...
, published in 1913.
| , (MIDI Musical Instrument Digital Interface MIDI is an industry-standard protocol, first defined in 1982 by Gordon Hall, that enables electronic musical instruments , computers and other electronic equipment to communicate and synchronize with each other... rendition, 4:04) |
History
After having written large, dense works such as Pelleas und MelisandePelleas und Melisande
Pelleas und Melisande, a Symphonic Poem for orchestra, is composer Arnold Schoenberg's earliest completed orchestral work, and his opus 5. The work was completed in February 1903, when Schoenberg was 28, and was premiered on 25 January 1905 at the Musikverein in Vienna under the composer's...
, up until 1907, Schönberg decided to turn away from this style, beginning with his second string quartet of 1908. The following excerpt, translated from a letter written to Ferruccio Busoni
Ferruccio Busoni
Ferruccio Busoni was an Italian composer, pianist, editor, writer, piano and composition teacher, and conductor.-Biography:...
in 1909, well expresses his reaction against the excess of the Romantic period
Romantic music
Romantic music or music in the Romantic Period is a musicological and artistic term referring to a particular period, theory, compositional practice, and canon in Western music history, from 1810 to 1900....
:
My goal: complete liberation from form and symbols, context and logic.
Away with motivic work!
Away with harmony as the cement of my architecture!
Harmony is expression and nothing more.
Away with pathos!
Away with 24 pound protracted scores!
My music must be short.
Lean! In two notes, not built, but "expressed".
And the result is, I hope, without stylized and sterilized drawn-out sentiment.
That is not how man feels; it is impossible to feel only one emotion.
Man has many feelings, thousands at a time, and these feelings add up no more than apples and pears add up. Each goes its own way.
This multicoloured, polymorphic, unlogical nature of our feelings, and their associations, a rush of blood, reactions in our senses, in our nerves; I must have this in my music.
It should be an expression of feeling, as if really were the feeling, full of unconscious connections, not some perception of "conscious logic".
Now I have said it, and they may burn me.
Interestingly, this work was composed at the same time that Schönberg was working on his orchestration of his massive Gurre-Lieder
Gurre-Lieder
Gurre-Lieder is a massive cantata for five vocal soloists, narrator, chorus and large orchestra, composed by Arnold Schoenberg, on poems by the Danish novelist Jens Peter Jacobsen...
. While he maintained a lifelong love of Romantic music, the extreme contrast between his Klavierstücke and his more romantic works comes from his modernist
Modernism (music)
Modernism in music is characterized by a desire for or belief in progress and science, surrealism, anti-romanticism, political advocacy, general intellectualism, and/or a breaking with the past or common practice.- Defining musical modernism :...
desire to find a new means of expression. For him, works like the Gurre-Lieder or Verklärte Nacht
Verklärte Nacht
Verklärte Nacht , Op. 4, is a string sextet in one movement composed by Arnold Schoenberg in 1899 and his earliest important work...
fulfilled the tradition he loved, but it was works like these Klavierstücke, or the Fünf Orchesterstücke
Five Pieces for Orchestra
The Five Pieces for Orchestra Op. 16 was composed by Arnold Schoenberg in 1909. The titles of the pieces, reluctantly added by the composer after the work's completion upon the request of his publisher, are as follows:...
that attempted to reach beyond it.
The first five pieces were written in a single day, February 11, 1911. The sixth and concluding piece was written on June 17, shortly after the death of Gustav Mahler
Gustav Mahler
Gustav Mahler was a late-Romantic Austrian composer and one of the leading conductors of his generation. He was born in the village of Kalischt, Bohemia, in what was then Austria-Hungary, now Kaliště in the Czech Republic...
. Indeed, it is a, "well circulated claim that Schoenberg conceived op. 19/vi as a tombeau to Mahler". It was first performed on February 4, 1912 in Berlin, by Louis Closson.
Structure
Each of the six pieces is aphoristically short, and unique in character. Following the expressionistExpressionism
Expressionism was a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it radically for emotional effect in order to evoke moods or ideas...
aesthetic, each piece can be understood to be a long composition condensed into a single brief miniature. Schoenberg regarded this style of writing as a necessary compositional reaction to the diminishing power of tonality and this compositional style would be a huge influence on Schoenberg's pupil, Anton Webern
Anton Webern
Anton Webern was an Austrian composer and conductor. He was a member of the Second Viennese School. As a student and significant follower of Arnold Schoenberg, he became one of the best-known exponents of the twelve-tone technique; in addition, his innovations regarding schematic organization of...
, whose works are well known for their brevity. The work is atonal
Atonality
Atonality in its broadest sense describes music that lacks a tonal center, or key. Atonality in this sense usually describes compositions written from about 1908 to the present day where a hierarchy of pitches focusing on a single, central tone is not used, and the notes of the chromatic scale...
, or at least any resemblance to tonality is fleeting, but it predates Schoenberg's later dodecaphonic
Twelve-tone technique
Twelve-tone technique is a method of musical composition devised by Arnold Schoenberg...
development. The six pieces do not carry individual names, but are often known by their tempo
Tempo
In musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
marking:
- Leicht, zart (Light, delicate)
- Langsam (Slow)
- Sehr langsame (Very slow s)
- Rasch, aber leicht (Brisk, but light)
- Etwas rasch (Somewhat brisk)
- Sehr langsam (Very slow)
External links
- Sechs kleine Klavierstücke at Wikilivres
- Sechs Kleine Klavierstücke at Schoenberg.org
- performance by Katherine Chi from the Isabella Stewart Gardner MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner MuseumThe Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum or Fenway Court, as the museum was known during Isabella Stewart Gardner's lifetime, is a museum in the Fenway-Kenmore neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, located within walking distance of the Museum of Fine Arts and near the Back Bay Fens...
in MP3MP3MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
format