Atonal Work by Schoenberg
Music listening has the likelihood to evoke an intense and robust experience in audiences, and music-making is a work that is present across all cultures. However, music is varied to the fact that the treatment of its features, such as pitch organization, timbre, and form diverge vividly. In the early 1900s, the inception of atonal music compositional strategy moved beyond the accepted practices and concepts of Western tonality. Atonal works from this period, such as Schoenberg’s work, remain masterworks of the modern repertoire. The long-lasting essence of Schoenberg’s atonal music appears in the extensive, yet fragmented analytical and critical literature that surrounds it. The present paper reflects on the atonal work with an emphasis on Schoenberg’s A Survivor From Warsaw in a bid to synthesize the state of knowledge related to the description of the genre.
Schoenberg’s A Survivor From Warsaw represents a piece of music made in remembrance to the victims of the Holocaust recorded after the downfall of the Nazi regime. Listening to the section, I noticed the originality relating to its orchestration, narration, and triggering orchestral responses to the visceral recited poetry. Schoenberg provides a critical element of atonal work by speaking with dynamics and wavering levels of demonstrative intensity as opposed to singing. The spoken dialogue emphasizes the importance of the work and applies the Sprechstimme style conceived in the 20th century (Samson, 1974). The absence of musical content as it softened the blow of the horrors presents a degree of discomfort as I listened. However, it gripped my attention in a way that gives the actual feeling of Schoenberg’s atonal work.
The piece lasts 6.51 minutes and spread on the atonal concept of twelve-tone row. The initial four notes of the twelve-tone row are evident in the introductory fanfare-like motive in the trumpets. In the same token, the violins play E and E-flat on beat two of measure one, one beat following the trumpets. Ideally, the above element borrows from atonal work because it adds more notes to the row, establishing the first six notes, often known as hexachord (Samson, 1974). The trumpets then play F-A between beats three and two, and the contrabass is ushered on pound three with the notes C# and D, making a complete 12-tone of row.
In the exact context, the piece consists of the introduction and presentations of the memories of the psychological turmoil and conflicts the speaker emphasized. Subsequently, the narrator talks about the punishment and chaos felt through Schoenberg’s German uproar as well as the suffering and grousing of the prisoners. Musically speaking, Schoenberg affirms the concept of atonal work through enhanced instrumental dissonance, volume, vocal technique, and emotional intensity that the narrator uses to describe the horrors of prisoners. The slow, yet sure dissonance reduction in the orchestra coupled with the disjointed and pointillist textural superiority represent the genre. Equally, the fast, pattern, and short-lacking drum fills and instrumental outpourings towards the last section of the poem reinforces the concept of atonal work.
In conclusion, the piece represents one of the most outstanding atonal works of Schoenberg. He manages to render and conceive the text based on tonal elements and orchestral choices that fit into the shape of his predominant three-part design. Overall, the poem represents a piece of idea where millions risked their lives towards the struggle to overcome challenges.