Schoenberg’s Five Pieces for Orchestra
Notes by TŌN clarinetist Zachary Gassenheimer
Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg is renowned for pioneering atonality (though he rejected the term) and serialism. A leading figure in the Second Viennese School, Schoenberg, alongside his students Alban Berg and Anton Webern, delved into expressionism, seeking to evoke emotion through musical distortion. Just after the turn of the 20th century, facing personal turmoil, Schoenberg aimed to break away from traditional tonality, which centers around a specific key. He introduced “total chromaticism,” a method where all pitches are of equal importance, eliminating the need for tonal development or resolution. Instead, he used varying textures, tone colors, and rhythmic elements to provide direction and form.
Schoenberg’s Five Pieces for Orchestra, premiered by the London Proms Orchestra in 1912, is notable for being one of the first major orchestral works to completely forsake tonality. In a letter to Richard Strauss, Schoenberg described the pieces as short, unrelated works focusing on texture, tone color, and rhythmic repetition to convey extreme musical expression without tonal guidance. Initially, Schoenberg resisted titling the movements, believing that music should express itself independently of written titles.
Originally composed for a large orchestra with extensive wind sections, the work allowed Schoenberg to explore the extremes of orchestral tone colors. The third movement in particular achieves this quite amazingly. This movement is a brilliant example of how Schoenberg utilizes the kaleidoscope of tone colors present through various instruments in the orchestra to develop a set of pitches. A term he later called “Klangfarbenmelodie” in his book Harmonielehre, Schoenberg employs this technique rather than expanding upon a singular motivic idea. While later publications of the Five Pieces have a smaller, more accessible instrumentation, the effect described above is still masterfully present through Schoenberg’s command of orchestration.
Though not well-received at its premiere, Five Pieces for Orchestra is now considered groundbreaking for its influence on 20th-century composers. Its innovative techniques, such as oscillating woodwind lines paired with harmonically static notes, are reflected in modern movie scores. Gustav Holst’s The Planets, which TŌN will perform selections from later this season, was inspired by Schoenberg’s work. Holst initially intended to title his suite “Seven Pieces for Orchestra”, but changed it due to his fascination with astronomy.