by Charles Rosen (Author)

In this lucid, revealing book, award-winning pianist and scholar Charles Rosen sheds light on the elusive music of Arnold Schoenberg and his challenge to conventional musical forms. Rosen argues that Schoenberg's music, with its atonality and dissonance, possesses a rare balance of form and emotion, making it, according to Rosen, "the most expressive music ever written." Concise and accessible, this book will appeal to fans, non-fans, and scholars of Schoenberg, and to those who have yet to be introduced to the works of one of the greatest composers of the twentieth century.

Back Jacket

In this lucid, revealing book, award-winning pianist and scholar Charles Rosen sheds light on the elusive music of Arnold Schoenberg and his challenge to conventional musical forms. Rosen argues that Schoenberg's music, with its atonality and dissonance, possesses a rare balance of form and emotion, making it the most expressive music ever written. Concise and accessible, this book looks at Schoenberg's ambiguous relation both to the central tradition of Western music and to the complex developments of modernism. Rosen analyzes Schoenberg's expressionist beginnings and how they relate in theory, performance, and musical experience to the system of atonality set forth in the music of Berg, Webern, and Schoenberg himself.

Guaranteed safe checkout: