Great Composers: Arnold Schoenberg

A look at the "Emancipator of Dissonance."
This was a viewer request from KZbinrs Eric Rakestraw and marcus aurelius. See the current request queue at lentovivace.com/requestqueue.html.
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Classical Nerd is a weekly video series covering music history, theoretical concepts, and techniques, hosted by composer, pianist, and music history aficionado Thomas Little.
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Music:
- Arnold Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4, performed by members of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and available on IMSLP: tinyurl.com/y8ekndzn
- Thomas Little: Dance! #2 in E minor, Op. 1 No. 2, performed by Rachel Fellows, Michael King, and Bruce Tippette
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Contact Information:
Questions and comments can be directed to:
nerdofclassical [at] gmail.com
Tumblr:
classical-nerd.tumblr.com
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All images and audio in this video are for educational purposes only and are not intended as copyright infringement. If you have a copyright concern, please contact me using the above information.

[@alexbrockwell8158]

There's a cocktail called the Schoenberg-- it's gin, with no tonic (ba-dum tss)

[@ClassicalNerd]

I'm sure many of those have been consumed after Schoenberg performances!

[@jackmarentette1302]

Bad joke

[@thijmenkrijgsman2417]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🥳🤣

[@johngeorgio5908]

OOOOhuahuahuahua ! LOL LOL OL !

[@jacklee6888]

POV talking to your classical Dad

[@pjbailey2313]

This is now one of my most favorite channels. Right up there with "Ask a Mortician " You are definitely much better and entertaining at presenting this information than the instructor in my 7:30am Music History class!!

[@sebastianzaczek]

You are not the only one with this opinion...:D

[@erzsblasfantaven3334]

Same

[@ClassicalNerd]

Thanks! But with it being at 7:30 AM, I would also blame the time for the lack of entertainment ... I'm not myself at such an hour either.

[@pjbailey2313]

This was back in the fall of 1976, the text was "Grout", and prof was ancient and tenured. It was boring. lol

[@christiancortes4400]

p.j. Bailey oh my god classical nerd and ask a mortician are also my favorite KZbin channels

[@opticalmixing23]

Not that anyone could play it with ease, but his Op.25 work is like jumping into a world of horror and beauty

[@TheMatrixxandRhodesShow]

It took me a while to get into Schoenberg but as I studeied 20th century composition techniques I have a great apprepiaction for his work. He was the most important composer of the 20th century. Not my favorite (Samuel Barber is) but the most important.

[@sujungleeflute7798]

I lLOVE the richness of the information lasting for 20 min no breaks!

[@Posturtle]

I couldn't help but notice your copy of his book "Harmonielehre" in the bookcase behind you.

[@ericrakestraw664]

Thanks for taking my request.

[@ClassicalNerd]

My pleasure!

[@Tengle6]

Yo dude great stuff keep it up

[@Opuskrokus]

These are brilliant, and would be even better if you'd include short music examples, like of the intervalic content.

[@ClassicalNerd]

I try to as much as possible, but with a one-week turnaround on top of a full course load, sometimes that gets cut! However, fear not-there's going to be a lot of that when I get around to the video on the Second Viennese School in general, which will be more free to talk about compositional technique since it won't be tied to being a biography of any one member. (It's currently 13th in the queue.)

That can be a problem nowadays on KZbin, since bogus copyright strikes are rampant... A lot of the times, even original recordings of other composers music (which creators themselves have played/recorded and use in their videos), gets claimed...

[@neao7939]

Your awesome man! Thanks for all your uploads!

[@groovermctoober4508]

Your presentation is simply outstanding, as always!

[@PierreChouinard-ht9iw]

Very informative. Very well done. Thanks.

[@toyatsymonds9324]

Excellent Presentation, well articulated. thankful

[@wbiro]

"Are you THE Schoenberg, the composer?" "Someone had to be." 3:09 Keith Emerson did a lot of quartal harmony (and melody)... hearkening back three quarters of a century...

[@agp745]

Great video! I was wondering if you could also make videos explaining the history and meaning behind great pieces such as Elgar’s Enigma Variations. I think that might be entertaining to watch. Keep up the good work!

[@ClassicalNerd]

A video on the Enigma Variations has been added to the request pool.

[@thebellman2010]

Great video and great channel!

[@alexandresobreiramartins9461]

It's very remarkable and for me pretty incomprehensible how intelligent, even brilliant people, can utterly fail to be rational. Schoenberg's superstitious vein is a perfect example of that. Edit: I DO love his music, regardless!

[@lutzwuppmann]

Great video! I always really liked Schoenberg's Music and I would like to play his "Variations on a Recitative" sometime, but it's sadly not written very well for the Instrument. By the way: The German Word "Sprechstimme" does not translate to "Spoken singing" but to "Speaking Voice" instead.

[@ericrakestraw664]

Actually, Schoenberg started writing in a free atonal style much earlier than Pierrot Lunaire (1912). Take his Drei Klavierstucke (Three Piano Pieces) Op. 11 and Five Pieces for Orchestra Op. 16, for example - both from 1909.

[@ClassicalNerd]

True, and perhaps I should have made that more clear looking back. However, _Pierrot_ is still the preeminent example of the pre-12-tone, freely atonal style, with the novelty of the singing style and ensemble, as well as his more unified approach to formal design. There's a lot more to say about that piece, and analysis of it tells us a lot more about who Schoenberg was.

[@donna25871]

One of my high school music teachers was close friends with Jane Manning the great interpreter of Pierrot Lunaire.

[@katherinehyk]

Could you do one on Charles Ives? (ps. I love your channel it's so educational such a great way to learn about composers bio. Keep up all the good stuff!!)

[@ClassicalNerd]

Ives is one of my favorite composers and I covered him in a very early video (although the production quality is overall a bit poorer than what I produce now): kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z5jJZ5yNYq52Y8U

[@richardhines8622]

What the man gave birth to is timeless.

[@tarzan2857]

Hi did you made a video of your Harmony,coubterpoint and theory books.You have such a beautiful collection I will be very happy if you can show us what you use.

[@ClassicalNerd]

I made a bookshelf tour a while back [ kzbin.info/www/bejne/b3_PhIBvf7yXobs ]. It's not super in-depth on any of the particular textbooks, but gives a good idea of what I've got.

[@kirschrot77]

Schönberg was born on the 13th of September, ironic

[@mattia.a_p]

Very complete video Thomas! Hadn’t watched this one yet. Maybe you’re interested in my analysis video about Schönberg’s Three Piano Pieces Op.11 :) Greetings from Berlin

[@ilovevloging100]

Could you do a video on Glen Gould? Thanks 💖

[@ClassicalNerd]

Gould has now moved up in the request pool!

[@joelparker]

Nice

[@christiancortes4400]

Please do Bizet

[@toyatsymonds9324]

EMANCIPATION FROM The HOLY TRINITY of music conformity.

[@Erickvazquezc]

Did you just adjust the twists and turns of your speech to cues on modulation happening in the background?

[@ClassicalNerd]

I've never intentionally edited a video like that, but sometimes things just fall into position like that in a happy coincidence!

[@bassoonistfromhell]

Schoen Arnoldberg

[@zacharydetrick7428]

12:13 Was Schoenberg the first to talk about this idea? I remember seeing it in the writings of Harry Partch.

[@ClassicalNerd]

Schoenberg saw chords as having less and less function, and the consequence of his "emancipation" is-in practice-the treating of any sonority as though it _were_ consonant. The explanation I used is generally taken a step further as a rationalization of microtonal music, but it can easily apply to Schoenberg; I've found it to be the best way to understand the rise of atonality in the context of the broadest scope of music history.

[@zacharydetrick7428]

But Schoenberg definitely did talk about history progressing through the overtone series?

[@ClassicalNerd]

He saw history as progressing through increased dissonance and wanted to free dissonance from the need to resolve to consonance. Since the overtone series governs the continuum of consonance to dissonance, it's the best way to understand what is, on a scientific level, "more dissonant."

[@SamiGold]

Schoenberg's music just blows my mind. I can barely understand it. Jesus this guy was brilliant

[@jackdoherty762]

I was wondering is there anywhere you list the sources for this video? I'm currently reading up on Schoenberg for a personal project about him, and I was wondering what biographies and books on his music you read while making this video. Thank you very much, I love your content.

[@ClassicalNerd]

I don't have a biography of Schoenberg, but he's a big enough figure that a somewhat decent picture of him is painted indirectly through many of the other books I have on the shelf. Much of my research, however, focused in on masters' theses and doctoral dissertations that I could find through manipulating search engines-i.e. combining Schoenberg's name, one of his pieces, one of his theoretical techniques, and the terms "PDF" and "biography" and "analysis" in many different ways. For a major figure like Schoenberg, this results in a ton of information. As far as keeping a source _list_ for individual videos, I'm sorry to say I can't help you on that front. I pull relevant information into the video scripts and keeping a separate list of source material is just not a part of that process.

[@jackdoherty762]

Classical Nerd that’s grand, thank you very much for responding anyway.

[@jonasotte5433]

Another Roslavez video please! ;)

[@ClassicalNerd]

... on what, exactly? There's not a whole lot more to talk about in terms of his biography.

[@jonasotte5433]

On the synthetic chords, for example :) There is not much information about it, but i've read something according to his second Etude for piano. Btw - great videos!

[@ClassicalNerd]

A video on Roslavets' synthetic system is now in the request pool.

[@jonasotte5433]

Classical Nerd Nice!

[@Tizohip]

i have to learn more english to understand this videos about Atonal music better. :)

[@srothbardt]

I like many of his works, but i think I like Berg better. Also like Webern. They are all classics now.

[@ivankaramasov]

What do you get if you combine Arnold Schoenberg with Arnold Schwarzenegger? Nothing. He'll be Bach.

[@ShorkGamer]

I found atonality ugly.

[@richardhines8622]

As is much of life, but we and it have our moments.

[@Kevin-sq1hh]

Noise just noise

[@ClassicalNerd]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/rKKydayJiN2MpsU

[@joshsussman9432]

You have to give this music a lot of time and patience. But once you do, it is amazing, emotionally and intellectually rewarding music.

[@richardrickford3028]

To you, yes

[@Kevin-sq1hh]

@@ClassicalNerd hey sorry about this comment, I was quite immature when I typed this. Though Schoenberg is still not pleasant to my ears, I’ve come to appreciate the theory and effort that goes into his type of music.

[@alexandros6433]

@@joshsussman9432 and pretend it sounds good, right

[@willx9352]

Atonality and serialism have proven to be a total musical dead end.

[@cometcourse381]

This is unfortunately true, now we are once again stuck in a cycle of musical cliches.

[@edwardgivenscomposer]

@@cometcourse381 exactly to which we now may add, thanks to Arnold, what is irreverently known as "Bleep-Squawk" music.

[@davidvanmersbergen5335]

Every note is as important as every other...leads to ugly music..