What a great piece. The slow movement in particular is intensely beautiful, and the theme from the very beginning of the quartet is about as hummable as 12-tone Schoenberg ever gets.
I have just finished listening to this, after going through all four quartets for the first time, and I think this last one is the best. It's really great music making, and I appreciate how much Schoenberg is able to produce such contrasts in mood and expressiveness within the context of complete atonality. The complete flip in atmosphere between the second and third movements is particularly intriguing.
This may be a silly question but does Schoenberg use the same row for all 4 mvts? Sometimes it seems like it but usually I can’t find the theme for a movement in the matrix of the first mvt theme.
Hello Mr Goza! I am particularly interested in the Largo movement of Schoenberg's Fourth String Quartet and I noticed throughout your tour of the Largo movement, you continually referred to Paragraphs. I was wondering what you meant by this? Also this is an awesome video.
Thank you for your question. My choice of "paragraph" to identify a structural level that both includes phrases and which in turn is included together with similar structures in larger units (themes, transitions, codas, and the like), is simply in line with my understanding of music as a non-semantic language, which tends to be organized following grammatical/syntactic conventions that run closely parallel to those in spoken or written language. I'm surely not original in my use of it, although I don't readily recall seeing other analysts resort to it. I'm glad you enjoyed the video!
How's that going? I have to confess that my admiration for Schoenberg's music was acquired only gradually, and it took me longer to warm to him than to either Berg or Webern. He still strikes me as long-winded, a problematic trait that sometimes mars otherwise fine compositions. To paraphrase Nietzsche, "Know the right time to stop."
The row is just another kind of leitmotif. How it is made up is dependent on the inspiration of the composer, as Schoenberg himself said. There is nothing "democratic" about it. Get a haircut--that may allow your brain to function.
Here's a link to my complete Arnold Schoenberg playlist: th-cam.com/play/PLRxr3feFPHKBXJngGPH4nn43P1lPnDe4U.html
This so beautiful. Your commentary encourages non specialists and invites attentive listening. I’m converted.
What a great piece. The slow movement in particular is intensely beautiful, and the theme from the very beginning of the quartet is about as hummable as 12-tone Schoenberg ever gets.
The slow movement really takes my breath away!
I have just finished listening to this, after going through all four quartets for the first time, and I think this last one is the best. It's really great music making, and I appreciate how much Schoenberg is able to produce such contrasts in mood and expressiveness within the context of complete atonality. The complete flip in atmosphere between the second and third movements is particularly intriguing.
This may be a silly question but does Schoenberg use the same row for all 4 mvts? Sometimes it seems like it but usually I can’t find the theme for a movement in the matrix of the first mvt theme.
Very good, thank you.
You're welcome.
Hello Mr Goza! I am particularly interested in the Largo movement of Schoenberg's Fourth String Quartet and I noticed throughout your tour of the Largo movement, you continually referred to Paragraphs. I was wondering what you meant by this? Also this is an awesome video.
Thank you for your question. My choice of "paragraph" to identify a structural level that both includes phrases and which in turn is included together with similar structures in larger units (themes, transitions, codas, and the like), is simply in line with my understanding of music as a non-semantic language, which tends to be organized following grammatical/syntactic conventions that run closely parallel to those in spoken or written language.
I'm surely not original in my use of it, although I don't readily recall seeing other analysts resort to it.
I'm glad you enjoyed the video!
I have never been a fan of Schoenberg's twelve-tone music. This might be my key to convert into a fan...
How's that going?
I have to confess that my admiration for Schoenberg's music was acquired only gradually, and it took me longer to warm to him than to either Berg or Webern. He still strikes me as long-winded, a problematic trait that sometimes mars otherwise fine compositions. To paraphrase Nietzsche, "Know the right time to stop."
The row is just another kind of leitmotif. How it is made up is dependent on the inspiration of the composer, as Schoenberg himself said. There is nothing "democratic" about it. Get a haircut--that may allow your brain to function.