Great composers: Arnold Schoenberg
- Course Code: MD701A
- Dates: 12/12/24 - 12/12/24
- Time: 11:00 - 16:00
- Taught: Thu, Daytime
- Duration: 1 session
- Location: Keeley Street
- Tutor: Trish Shaw
Course Code: MD701A
Duration: 1 session
Please note: We offer a wide variety of financial support to make courses affordable. Just visit our online Help Centre for more information on a range of topics including fees, online learning and FAQs.
What is the course about?
Schoenberg is primarily associated with The Method of Composing with 12 Tones Related Only With One Another, but there is so much more to this fascinating composer. How do we learn to appreciate his music when the widespread perception is that it is difficult and ugly?
This course aims to demystify the ideas and music of this influential composer, theorist, teacher, conductor and painter, in the context of his extraordinary life and times, and the wider context of Western music in the first half of the 20th century.
What will we cover?
- Schoenberg's musical studies and influences, and important moments in his personal life
- early works in ultra-Romantic style such as Verklärte Nacht
- gradual "disintegration of tonality" in free atonal works such as Piano Pieces Op.11 and Pierrot Lunaire Op.21
- Schoenberg as musical theorist and teacher, especially of Alban Berg and Anton Webern, the "Second Viennese School," and the Society for Private Musical Performances
- evolution of the Method of composing with all 12 notes of the chromatic spectrum, in works such as the Piano Suite Op.25 and Theme and Variations Op.43.
- rivalry between Schoenberg's Atonalism and Stravinsky's Neoclassicism, in Europe and later in the USA
- Schoenberg's exploration of his Jewish heritage in works such as Die Jakobsleiter and A Survivor from Warsaw
- Schoeberg's enduring influence on Western music in the 20th century and beyond.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
- understand the key events in Schoenberg's life and work
- know about the key works in Schoenberg's output
- appreciate the aesthetics and ideas that shape the composer's musical language and style
- understand the impact and influence of Schoenberg's ideas and work
- listen to modernist music with greater understanding and enjoyment.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
No previous knowledge of classical music is required, but you will need to be open-minded in your musical tastes and interests. Some knowledge of technical musical concepts (e.g. scale forms, intervals, how a chord is constructed) is useful, but not essential.
You will need to be able to follow written and verbal instructions and take part in class discussion in English, and to take your own notes. All material in German will be accompanied by English translations.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
Tutor presentation, guided listening and watching, class discussion.
Course materials will be shared via Google Classroom, with recommendations to encourage further exploration after the course.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
Please bring a notebook and pen to take your own notes. All other materials will be provided by the tutor.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
City Lit offers a wide range of Music history courses. For more information, visit our Guide to the Music history programme. You may also be interested in courses in modern history, art, ideas, German culture, etc.
Trish trained as a violinist, singer and historical musicologist, with a specialism in music since 1900. She has worked variously as a university and college lecturer, choral conductor and arranger, and orchestral violinist, and has taught a wide range of subjects including choral singing and conducting, composition techniques, music theory, analysis and musicianship, music history, violin and chamber music. She has published and presented at conferences on French music (especially Ravel), and Australian music and cultural history. At City Lit, Trish currently teaches Orchestra workshop and short music history and theory courses. Her interests in the arts also include contemporary theatre, dance and visual arts.
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.
