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Techniques of Opposition in the Choral Music of Anton

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Techniques of Opposition in the Choral Music of Anton TECHNIQUES OF OPPOSITION IN THE CHORAL MUSIC OF ANTON WEBERN by THOMAS FREDRICK PETROWITZ B. Mus., University of British Columbia9 1966 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF MUSIC in the Department of MUSIC W© accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard* THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA APRIL, 1971 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department or by his representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department of ^/ 'J&t&ttf' The University of British Columbia Vancouver 8, Canada pate fipuy g$>t /*r?/ ... I understand the word 'Art' as meaning the faculty of presenting a thought in the clearest, simplest form, that is, the most "graspable" form ... That is my view of art. And that is why I have never understood the meaning of 'Classical', 'Romantic1 and the rest, and I have never placed myself in opposition to the masters of the past but have always tried to do just like them: to say what it is given to me to say with the utmost clarity Anton Webern 1 Anton Webern, Letters to Hildeqard Jone and Joseph Humplik. (Bryn Mawr: Theodore Presser Company, 1967), p. 36. ABSTRACT The purpose of this.thesis is to investigate the compositional changes, similarities and innovations that occur in the choral music of Anton Webern. The study is significant in that the five pieces to be discussed cover the span of his creative life. Only the free atonal period which includes Op. 3 to Op. 17 has no representative choral music. Each composition, or where applicable, each movement within that composition is studied in a similar manner: 1. Outward organization, form, compositional and pre-compositional devices, treatment of the twelve-note series (after Op. 19). 2. Text, treatment of words with regard to contour, natural inflection and rhythm. 3. Instruments and their role in the last four choral pieces. From the study, the author concludes that the composi• tional techniques in Anton Webern1s choral music are based primarily on a continual metamorphosis and consolidation of five basic elements: form, text, melody, harmony and instrumentation. The classical model which is used as the basis for Op. 2 is replaced in Op. 19 by a structure dependent on the length and divisions of the text. In the last three pieces, form is dependent on the possibilities and restrictions inherent in the dodecaphonic technique. Texts with regular meters and simple rhythms are used in Op. 2 and Op. 19. After the Zwei Lieder Webern chooses blank verse poems and shifts his attentions to the singling out of particular words and expands on their inherent musical and timbral qualities. The melodic contours which Webern perceived in the poem "Entflieht auf leichten. Kahnen..." are reflected in his musical lines. Vertical expansion by regular stages to vocal extremes occurs in the succeeding works returning, in the final movement of Op. 31 to the gentle contours and poetic considerations that were characteristic of Op. 2. In the last four pieces melodic variation occurs as a result of Webern's manipulation of a recurring four-note motive which is regarded as the composer's "signature phrase." In Op. 2, Webern1s approach to harmony is based on romantic models although most of the vertical structures of this piece have multiple interpretations. As his command over the twelve-tone technique becomes more refined, his vertical structures evolve from a random ordering of one series to a homorhythmic realization of four series within the framework of one or more pitch canons. -Webern uses instruments in his choral pieces to provide continuity between the vocal sections and to intro• duce, continue, or end a particular mood. Choral sections are rarely accompanied and the composer prefers to use the. instruments as voices in canon with the solo lines rather than as accompaniments. Instruments are chosen usually for their proximity to vocal timbre and for their percussive qualities. The use of Klangfarbenmelodie or melody of timbres becomes increasingly evident throughout Webern's compositional career. In conclusion, it is seen that these five aspects, combined in varying degrees, result in five compositions that are unique in musical history, works that are at the same time intricate, economic and transparent.' Finally, the study is intended to provide the reader with some small measure of understanding and approachability to the choral music of Anton Webern. April, 1971 Supervisor Chapter Page Abstract ii Introduction vi I. Entflieht auf leichten Kahnen... Opus 2 1 II. Zwei Lieder, Opus 19 12 III. Das Augenlicht, Opus 26 27 IV. First Cantata, Opus 29 41 V. Second Cantata, Opus 31 66 Conclusion 94 . Appendix 97 Bibliography 102 INTRODUCTION The purpose of this paper is to investigate the compositional changes, similarities and innovations that occur in the choral works of Anton Webern. The study is significant in that the five works to be discussed range from the tonal to the adoption of the Schoenberg twelve-tone technique and beyond to the personal refinement found in the Second Cantata, his last published work. Each choral composition, or where applicable each movement within that composition, is studied in a similar manner: firstly, the outward and physical organization such as form, compositional and pre-compositional devices and, after Op. 19, the treatment of the twelve- note series; secondly, the text and the treatment of the words with regard to contour, natural inflection and rhythm; finally, the instruments and their role in the last four choral works. From the study, the author hopes to show that the choral techniques of Anton Webern are based on a continual metamorphosis; the phasing out of certain aspects in order to accentuate others. CHAPTER I Entflieht auf leichten Kahnen ... Op. 2 Of his thirty-one compositions with Opus numbers, only five of Anton Webern's works are for chorus. Written between 1908 and 1943, these five pieces cover the span of his creative life. Only the free atonal period which includes Op. 3 to Op. 17 has no representative choral music. The Passacaqlia for Orchestra, Op. 1 (1908) and Entflieht auf leichten Kahnen ... Op. 2 (1908) for a capella mixed chorus"'- are the only compositions of his entire output that have key signatures. Although they are quite different in style from his later works, they do contain several elements that become characteristic of his later style. Op. 2 is a setting of the poem with the same title by Stefan George. The piece falls into three sections The indication in the score, Universal Editions No. 6643, is for a capella mixed chorus. There is, however, reference to an unpublished instrumental accompaniment to this work in Anton Webern: Perspectives, compiled by Hans Moldenhauer (Seattle and London: University of Washington Press, 1966) p. 125. ^One of the "Mournful Dances" from his "The Year of the Soul," written in 1897, published in Stefan George Werke in Zwei Banden, (Munich: Helmut Kupper Vormals Georg Bondi, 1958, p. 161. (A-B-A'-Coda) and is canonic throughout. The first section is constructed so that each of its two canonic voices is doubled at either the third or sixth below. The melodic material of the first canon is very chromatic in a closely knit construction with most of the motion by seconds, either major or minor. There is here also the first use of a four-note motive, a construction that becomes increasingly important in Webern's later writings. Example 1 Op. 2 mm I Op. iqf*) mm if >j ft J> 1 J J*-1 > 1$ * *J*-^ Xff 1 Of.Zb mm 8-9 Op. 31-* mm f7-28 At the centre of the first canon (measure five) there is the repeated interval of a minor sixth in the Soprano and Alto (b^ and d')^ and a temporary reversal of melodic direction, hinting at the arch form that becomes an important compositional device of Webern's later works. The temporary reversal idea becomes more significant when it is noticed that the centre of the following canon receives a similar treatment. Example 2 Op. 2 mm 5" mm D k tj 'P P 'P 'F 9 The high points of the first canon, the e'', f'1 and f#'' in measures two, four and six respectively are structurally placed so that they complement the arch form indicated above. The first canonic entry of the opening section is the soprano which is paralleled by the alto at the third below. The imitating voices, bass and tenor respectively, follow at the distance of one measure, the tenor in the same octave as the alto and the bass an octave below the soprano. At the beginning of the third measure, however, the bass and tenor interchange parts so that the bass follows the alto, and the tenor, the soprano. In measures three also, the first four notes of the alto line are altered so that they do not parallel the soprano. A similar alteration occurs later in measures seven and eight. Example 3 Op Z mm 3 mm 7- 8 t r n T i These alterations are structurally placed so that an ambiguous tonality, resulting from a series of similar harmonic intervals surrounds them. The first four intervals between the soprano and alto have a changing quality - minor, major, minor, major - from which one may deduce a harmonic progression of I-IV-I in G major, or V-I-V in C major.
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