Arnold Schoenberg

Arnold Schoenberg, possibly the composer of greatest significance in the sweeping changes to our perception of music in the 20th century, was born in Vienna on 13 September 1874. Prior to his change, the music he wrote gradually reached extremes of chromatic harmony, which led to atonality. The rest is history, but the tidal wave of disruption can still be felt. He died in Los Angeles on 13 July 1951.

A selection of articles about Arnold Schoenberg

CD Spotlight. Hugely Attractive Music - Gerald Fenech listens to a reissue of cello concertos by Haydn and Monn. '... simple but masterfully crafted, spouting melody at every turn.'

Ensemble. Do You like Chung? - Myung-whun Chung conducts Brahms symphonies, heard by Giuseppe Pennisi

Echoes of Oblivion by Robert McCarney - Nothing Written in the Stars

Echoes of Oblivion by Robert McCarney - Sound Sense and Nonsense

CD Spotlight. Fascinating Listening - Music by Alban Berg, recommended by Geoff Pearce. '... the BBC Symphony Orchestra is on top form ...'

Echoes of Oblivion by Robert McCarney - From swerve of shore to bend of bay

CD Spotlight. Double Affection - Giuseppe Pennisi listens to Malipiero. '... played impassionately ...'

Classical music news. July 2022 Newsletter - Watch and listen to our July 2022 newsletter - Youth Involvement in Classical Music

Ensemble. Pierrot in Rome - Music by Arnold Schoenberg, Sylvano Bussotti and Giacomo Puccini, heard by Giuseppe Pennisi

Classical music news. The Schoenberg Effect - The Berlin-based Notos Quartett's second album, devoted to Brahms, will be released on Sony Classical this month

120 Years Ago - A snapshot of the musical world at the turn of the twentieth century, by George Colerick

CD Spotlight. Arrangements for Chamber Orchestra - Gerald Fenech listens to scaled-down Busoni, Debussy and Mahler. 'All four works retain a certain freshness in their new garb, and despite the sound world created being slightly less opulent than their orchestral originals, they still acquire a more fully-fleshed structure than some keyboard reductions.'

Jerome Rose - In the build-up to New York's International Keyboard Institute and Festival, Richard Meszto writes about the festival's founder

CD Spotlight. A Compelling Disc - Schoenberg piano music, recommended by Geoff Pearce. 'Yoko Hirota's performances here are truly exceptional ...'

Classical music news. Music Mountain - The Connecticut-based concert series celebrates ninety continuous years

Ensemble. Late Romanticism - Giuseppe Pennisi is moved by Richard Strauss and Schoenberg played by the Stradivari Sextet

Ensemble. A Great Start - Freddie Meyers' new opera 'A Sketch of Slow Time' impresses Alice McVeigh

Ensemble. Real Emotions - Two concerts in Salzburg impress Giuseppe Pennisi

CD Spotlight. Totally Compelling - Schoenberg's arrangements of Mahler songs impress Geoff Pearce. '... I found this version very interesting and overall, more intimate ...'

CD Spotlight. Musical Extremities - Works by Schoenberg and Portera, heard by Gerald Fenech. 'Performances are satisfyingly macabre in Schoenberg's work, while Portera's piece is given a well-rounded and detailed interpretation.'

CD Spotlight. Wildly Joyous - Lutoslawski and Brahms orchestral music grips Gerald Fenech. 'Peruvian conductor Miguel Harth-Bedoya marshalls his Fort Worth forces with effortless control.'

A Higher Standard - Malcolm Miller reports from the Wigmore Hall / Kohn Foundation International Song Competition

Ensemble. Alleged Dances - Psappha at the Buxton Festival, reviewed by Mike Wheeler

Young Genius - George Colerick investigates the emotional life of Johannes Brahms in his twenties

Ensemble. Delicate Sensitivity - The Innovation Chamber Ensemble at Buxton, heard by Mike Wheeler

Ensemble. Particularly Well Suited - Sasha Cooke saves the day in Cleveland, by Suzanne Torrey

Ensemble. A Tremendous Success - Rome's 'Controtempo' contemporary music festival, experienced by Giuseppe Pennisi

CD Spotlight. Musical Rebellion - Composers displaced by the Third Reich, heard by Howard Smith. '... piano music of singular merit.'

CD Spotlight. Haunting Images - Mahler arranged by Schoenberg, heard by Gerald Fenech. 'An unusual interpretation of "Das Lied" in excellent sound and presentation ...'

Ensemble. Exploring the Darker Side - Dan Miller and Richard Hodges at Derby's Festival of Britten, reviewed by Mike Wheeler

Ensemble. Oversized Lieder - Giuseppe Pennisi listens to Schoenberg in Bucharest

An Invaluable Book - Gergely Hubai's 'Torn Music: Rejected film scores, a selected history', recommended by Patric Standford

Andrew Schartmann's Musical Tidbits - From Pedantry to Masterwork. A Note on Chopin's Étude in C major, Op 10, No 1

Ensemble. A Relaxed Evening - Bill Newman attends a 'family sing-song' event in London

CD Spotlight. A Towering Rage - Shostakovich's Symphony No 11, heard by Robert Anderson. '... total conviction.'

CD Spotlight. Thoughtful and Elegiac - String quartets by David Matthews, recommended by Ron Bierman. 'The performances do full justice to the music.'

Timings - Breaking Moulds: 1910, by Jennifer Paull

CD Spotlight. Well Worth Exploration - Orchestral music by Lodewijk Mortelmans, heard by Robert Anderson. 'The performances ... are a delight ...'

A Golden Treasury - Havergal Brian on European and American music, read by Patric Standford

CD Spotlight. Impeccable - Music by Szymanowski, Webern and Schoeck, recommended by Ron Bierman. 'The quartet plays with authority throughout ...'

CD Spotlight. Almost a Transformation - David Rubinstein plays Busoni, heard by K C Devereaux. '... Rubenstein's hand is steady on the tiller.'

Ensemble. Impeccable Standards - Bill Newman's pick of June and July concerts at London's Wigmore Hall

CD Spotlight. Finely Judged - Brahms and Schumann piano quartets, heard by Robert Anderson. 'This is music-making both sensitive and relaxed.'

Flowers of Light - Puccini's 'I crisantemi' as a pedagogical tool for piano performance majors, by Heidi Lowy

Ensemble. A Top-notch Formation - Operas by Zemlinsky and Puccini, reviewed by Giuseppe Pennisi

A Vision of Shostakovich's String Quartet No 8 - A poem by J Jean Mayfield

Ensemble. Compelling Vocal Drama - Lawrence Budmen listens to Measha Brueggergosman and the New World Symphony

CD Spotlight. Without Parallel - Haydn's late piano trios delight Robert Anderson. '... stylish and impeccable.'

CD Spotlight. Highly Challenging - Music for unaccompanied violin, heard by Howard Smith. '... searching performance ...'

Timings - Universal Edition's preparations for the Mahler Centenary years (2010-2011), by Jennifer Paull

CD Spotlight. Sacrificing the 'unmodern' - Music by Julius Röntgen and Per Nørgård, heard by George Balcombe. 'How could any audience resist ... ?'

A Useful Survey - Thomas May's 'The John Adams Reader', reviewed by Mike Wheeler

Music for Musicians Only? - The public turns a deaf ear to improvised music. As for classical music, Jan Dahlstedt claims that having abandoned improvisation, classical music entered a sidetrack from which it has never escaped, thus badly stifling creative progress. If he is guilty of heresy or may have a point, read on and judge for yourself.

Ensemble. Fresh Energy - Sinfonia Viva begins its Mendelssohn celebrations, heard by Mike Wheeler

CD Spotlight. A Healthy Revival - Choral music by Randall Thompson, enjoyed by Howard Smith. '... performances and recording are exemplary throughout.'

Record Box. Richness of Colour - Stokowski conducts Wagner, Enescu, Debussy and Stravinsky, enjoyed by Robert Anderson

Book Review. A Lordly Survey - Nick Strimple's 'Choral Music in the Nineteenth Century', reviewed by Robert Anderson

Limitless Combinatorics - Eric Pettine postulates 'No Shortage of Melodies Anytime Soon', and offers some real hope for cynical musicians who think they've heard it all

Interval Talk - Alistair Hinton comments on Patric Standford's recent 'Provocative Thoughts'

Ensemble. Musical Paradise - The Artemis Quartet shines at Urbana's Krannert Center, reviewed by Sonja Stojanovic

CD Spotlight. Also Sprach Richard Strauss - 'An Alpine Symphony', enjoyed by George Balcombe. '... beguiling music.'

Ensemble. Engulfing Vision - A concert at New York City's Hunter College, reviewed by Maria Nockin

DVD Spotlight. Moving and Powerful - Gershwin's 'Porgy and Bess', appreciated by Robert Anderson. 'The work is in the safest possible hands ...'

Ensemble. 'I wandered through Theresienstadt' - Malcolm Miller was at a Terezin concert on the eve of Holocaust Day 2006

Ensemble. An acquired taste - Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau in Munich, by Tess Crebbin and Sissy von Kotzebue

Ensemble. Instrumental dexterity - Transfigured Night for the New World Symphony, by Lawrence Budmen

Provocations - Alistair Hinton and Chad Wozniak discuss Patric Standford's recent 'Provocative Thoughts'

CD Spotlight. A versatile performer - Daphna Cohen-Licht's recital disc 'Emotional Turbulence', reviewed by Robert Hugill. '... Cohen-Licht gives full reign to the drama ...'

Record box. Impressive performances - A 20th century recital by the Westminster Choir, recommended by Patric Standford

The same or not the same? - That is the question. Alistair Hinton responds to Patric Standford's recent provocative essay

Ensemble. Bracing Schoenberg - Lawrence Budmen listens to the Artemis Quartet

Ensemble - Evolution or revolution? Samuel Brown on RTÉ's Second Viennese School weekend

Record Box - Instant Blend - Weigl the unknown, with Basil Ramsey

Planning your collection - Steven Wray and Sam Haywood, with Bill Newman