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Variations for piano (Webern)

January 01, 1970

Variations for piano, Op. 27, is a twelve-tone piece for piano composed by Anton Webern in 1936. It consists of three movements:

First tone row of the third movement[1][2]
  1. Sehr mäßig (Very moderate)
  2. Sehr schnell (Very fast)
  3. Ruhig fließend (Calmly flowing)

Webern's only published work for solo piano, the Variations are one of his major instrumental works and a signal example of his late style.[3] Webern dedicated the work to pianist Eduard Steuermann.[4] However, it was premiered (after months of coaching from Webern) by Peter Stadlen on 26 October 1937 in Vienna.[5] Much later Stadlen produced the definitive interpretive edition of Op. 27, published by Universal Edition in 1979.[6]

History of composition edit

By the early 1930s, Webern was one of the composers and artists criticised by the Nazi Party, which was rapidly gaining power. By 1934, Webern's conducting career, a major source of income for the composer, was practically over, and he earned his living by teaching composition to a few private pupils. Despite the considerable disadvantages this financial situation had, the lack of a stable job provided Webern with more time to compose.[3]

Opus 27 took Webern about a year to complete. The three movements were not composed in the order they appear in the work:[7]

  • Third movement: begun 14 October 1935, completed 8 July 1936
  • First movement: begun 22 July 1936, completed 19 August 1936
  • Second movement: begun 25 August 1936, completed 5 November 1936

The piece is the only work for piano solo that was published by the composer and assigned an opus number. It was also the last work by Webern to be published by Universal Edition during his lifetime.[8]

Analysis edit

Structure edit

All three movements of the work are 12-tone pieces based on the following row (as found at the beginning of the second movement):[9]

 
Principal forms of Webern's tone row from movement 1.[9] The first simultaneous pairing of row forms is P1 and R8, and as with the principal forms, each hexachord fills in a chromatic fourth, with B as the pivot (end of P1 and beginning of IR8), and thus linked by the prominent tritone in the center of the row.[10]

The work's title, Variations, is ambiguous. In a letter dated 18 July, Webern wrote: "The completed part is a variations movement; the whole will be a kind of 'Suite'".[11] Only the third movement was completed at the time, and it is clearly a set of variations. The form of the other two movements conforms to the "Suite" plan: the first movement is a ternary form, A–B–A, and the second is a binary form. However, to refer to an entire work by the form of its last movement is very unusual, and numerous attempts have been made to explain the title.[12]

Webern scholar Kathryn Bailey outlined three possible views on the structure of the piece. Webern's Variations may be considered any of these:[13]

  1. A three-movement sonata: sonata form – binary scherzo – variations
  2. A three-movement suite: ternary movement – binary movement – variations
  3. A set of variations, in which the first two movements have little connection to the third

One of the earliest explanations was offered by René Leibowitz, who in 1948 described the first movement as a theme and two variations, the second movement as a theme with a single variation, and the third movement as five variations of yet another theme.[13] Willi Reich, a member of Arnold Schoenberg's circle, described the work as a sonatina which begins with a set of variations (first movement) and ends with a sonata form (third movement). Reich claimed his explanation was identical to Webern's and stemmed from the two men's conversations, however, the authenticity of this claim has been questioned.[14]

Yet another explanation was provided by Friedhelm Döhl (who published Reich's analysis, but did not find it satisfactory), who viewed each of the fourteen phrases in the first movement as a variation of the prime/retrograde idea, and found the same structure in the second movement. Robert U. Nelson published a similar analysis in 1969.[15] Finally, Kathryn Bailey's analysis suggests that the first movement is a sonata form, her ideas supported by Webern's own remarks in the original manuscript, published in 1979 by Peter Stadlen.[16]

Symmetry edit

A particularly notable feature of Variations is symmetry, which is featured throughout the work. Horizontal symmetry can be observed, for example, in successive phrases of the first movement: bars 1–18 comprise four phrases, each built from the normal row and its retrograde stated simultaneously, and the second half of the phrase is always a reverse of the first. Each phrase is therefore a palindrome, though only the first pair of rows in the beginning of the movement is perfectly palindromic.[16] Vertical symmetry pervades the second movement, which is a canon. The pitches are arranged around the pitch axis of A4. Each downward reaching interval is replicated exactly in the opposite direction.[17]

Notes edit

  1. ^ Bailey 1991, p. 24.
  2. ^ Wason 1987, p. 74.
  3. ^ a b Bailey 1998, p. 151
  4. ^ Webern 1937: "Eduard Steuermann / gewidmet" (on frontispiece).
  5. ^ Bailey 1998, p. 152.
  6. ^ Burge 1980.
  7. ^ Dates from: Bailey 1991, p. 452
  8. ^ Bailey 1998, p. 152.
  9. ^ a b Nolan 1995, pp. 49–50, though her 0 is G♯, and so she labels these two row forms P8 and I10.
  10. ^ Leeuw 2005, p. 158, for whom 0=E♭.
  11. ^ Bailey 1991, p. 189.
  12. ^ Bailey 1991, pp. 189–190.
  13. ^ a b Bailey 1991, p. 190
  14. ^ Bailey 1991, p. 191.
  15. ^ Nelson 1969.
  16. ^ a b Bailey 1991, p. 192
  17. ^ Bailey 1991, pp. 262–264.

Sources

  • Bailey, Kathryn (1991). The Twelve-note Music of Anton Webern: Old Forms in a New Language. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-39088-0. Paperback reprint 2006. ISBN 978-0-521-54796-3.
  • Bailey, Kathryn (1998). The Life of Webern. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-57566-9.
  • Burge, David (December 1980). "Review: Variationen für Klavier, Op. 27 by Anton Webern, Peter Stadlen". Notes. Second Series. 37 (2): 405–406. doi:10.2307/939520. JSTOR 939520.
  • Leeuw, Ton de (2005). Music of the Twentieth Century: A Study of Its Elements and Structure. Translated by Stephen Taylor. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press. ISBN 90-5356-765-8. Translation of Muziek van de twintigste eeuw: een onderzoek naar haar elementen en structuur. Utrecht: Oosthoek, 1964. Third impression, Utrecht: Bohn, Scheltema & Holkema, 1977. ISBN 90-313-0244-9.
  • Nelson, Robert U. (Spring–Summer 1969). "Webern's Path to the Serial Variation". Perspectives of New Music. 7 (2): 73–93. doi:10.2307/832295. JSTOR 832295.
  • Nolan, Catherine (Spring 1995). "Structural Levels and Twelve-Tone Music: A Revisionist Analysis of the Second Movement of Webern's 'Piano Variations Op. 27'". Journal of Music Theory. 39 (1): 47–76. doi:10.2307/843898. JSTOR 843898.
  • Wason, Robert W. (1987). "Webern's 'Variations for Piano', Op. 27: Musical Structure and the Performance Score". Intégral. 1: 57–103.
  • Webern, Anton (1937). Variationen für Klavier, Op. 27. Vienna: Universal Edition. UE 10881.

Further reading edit

  • Bailey, Kathryn. Juni 1988. "Willi Reich's Webern". Tempo, New Series, no. 165, Emigres and 'Internal Exiles', pp. 18–22.
  • Fiori, Mary E. 1970. "Webern's Use of Motive in the 'Piano Variations'". In: Lincoln, Harry B. (ed.). The Computer and Music, pp. 115–122. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.
  • Jones, James Rives. Autumn–Winter 1968. "Some Aspects of Rhythm and Meter in Webern's Opus 27". Perspectives of New Music, vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 103–109.
  • Leleu, Jean-Louis. 1998. "Intuition et esprit de système. Réflexions sur le schéma formel du deuxième mouvement des Variations pour piano op. 27 de Webern". Revue belge de Musicologie / Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap, vol. 52, pp. 101–122.
  • Lewin, David. October 1993. "A Metrical Problem in Webern's Op. 27". Music Analysis, vol. 12, no. 3, pp. 343–354.
  • Moldenhauer, Hans, and Rosaleen Moldenhauer. 1978. Anton von Webern: A Chronicle of His Life and Work. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 0-394-47237-3. London: Gollancz. ISBN 0-575-02436-4
  • Ogden, Wilbur. Spring 1962. "A Webern Analysis". Journal of Music Theory, vol. 6, no. 1, pp. 133–135.
  • Stockhausen, Karlheinz. 1963. "Gruppenkomposition: Klavierstück I (Anleitung zum Hören)". In his Texte zur Musik, vol. 1, edited by Dieter Schnebel, 63–74. DuMont Dokumente. Cologne: Verlag M. DuMont Schauberg.
  • Travis, Roy. Spring–Summer 1966. "Directed Motion in Two Brief Piano Pieces by Schoenberg and Webern". Perspectives of New Music 4.2, pp. 85–89.
  • Westergaard, Peter. Spring 1963. "Webern and 'Total Organization': an analysis of the Second Movement of Piano Variations, op. 27". Perspectives of New Music 1.2, pp. 107–120.

External links edit

January 01, 1970
variations, piano, webern, variations, piano, twelve, tone, piece, piano, composed, anton, webern, 1936, consists, three, movements, first, tone, third, movement, source, source, source, sehr, mäßig, very, moderate, sehr, schnell, very, fast, ruhig, fließend, . Variations for piano Op 27 is a twelve tone piece for piano composed by Anton Webern in 1936 It consists of three movements First tone row of the third movement 1 2 source source source Sehr massig Very moderate Sehr schnell Very fast Ruhig fliessend Calmly flowing Webern s only published work for solo piano the Variations are one of his major instrumental works and a signal example of his late style 3 Webern dedicated the work to pianist Eduard Steuermann 4 However it was premiered after months of coaching from Webern by Peter Stadlen on 26 October 1937 in Vienna 5 Much later Stadlen produced the definitive interpretive edition of Op 27 published by Universal Edition in 1979 6 Contents 1 History of composition 2 Analysis 2 1 Structure 2 2 Symmetry 3 Notes 4 Further reading 5 External linksHistory of composition editBy the early 1930s Webern was one of the composers and artists criticised by the Nazi Party which was rapidly gaining power By 1934 Webern s conducting career a major source of income for the composer was practically over and he earned his living by teaching composition to a few private pupils Despite the considerable disadvantages this financial situation had the lack of a stable job provided Webern with more time to compose 3 Opus 27 took Webern about a year to complete The three movements were not composed in the order they appear in the work 7 Third movement begun 14 October 1935 completed 8 July 1936 First movement begun 22 July 1936 completed 19 August 1936 Second movement begun 25 August 1936 completed 5 November 1936 The piece is the only work for piano solo that was published by the composer and assigned an opus number It was also the last work by Webern to be published by Universal Edition during his lifetime 8 Analysis editStructure edit All three movements of the work are 12 tone pieces based on the following row as found at the beginning of the second movement 9 nbsp Principal forms of Webern s tone row from movement 1 9 The first simultaneous pairing of row forms is P1 and R8 and as with the principal forms each hexachord fills in a chromatic fourth with B as the pivot end of P1 and beginning of IR8 and thus linked by the prominent tritone in the center of the row 10 source source source The work s title Variations is ambiguous In a letter dated 18 July Webern wrote The completed part is a variations movement the whole will be a kind of Suite 11 Only the third movement was completed at the time and it is clearly a set of variations The form of the other two movements conforms to the Suite plan the first movement is a ternary form A B A and the second is a binary form However to refer to an entire work by the form of its last movement is very unusual and numerous attempts have been made to explain the title 12 Webern scholar Kathryn Bailey outlined three possible views on the structure of the piece Webern s Variations may be considered any of these 13 A three movement sonata sonata form binary scherzo variations A three movement suite ternary movement binary movement variations A set of variations in which the first two movements have little connection to the third One of the earliest explanations was offered by Rene Leibowitz who in 1948 described the first movement as a theme and two variations the second movement as a theme with a single variation and the third movement as five variations of yet another theme 13 Willi Reich a member of Arnold Schoenberg s circle described the work as a sonatina which begins with a set of variations first movement and ends with a sonata form third movement Reich claimed his explanation was identical to Webern s and stemmed from the two men s conversations however the authenticity of this claim has been questioned 14 Yet another explanation was provided by Friedhelm Dohl who published Reich s analysis but did not find it satisfactory who viewed each of the fourteen phrases in the first movement as a variation of the prime retrograde idea and found the same structure in the second movement Robert U Nelson published a similar analysis in 1969 15 Finally Kathryn Bailey s analysis suggests that the first movement is a sonata form her ideas supported by Webern s own remarks in the original manuscript published in 1979 by Peter Stadlen 16 Symmetry edit A particularly notable feature of Variations is symmetry which is featured throughout the work Horizontal symmetry can be observed for example in successive phrases of the first movement bars 1 18 comprise four phrases each built from the normal row and its retrograde stated simultaneously and the second half of the phrase is always a reverse of the first Each phrase is therefore a palindrome though only the first pair of rows in the beginning of the movement is perfectly palindromic 16 Vertical symmetry pervades the second movement which is a canon The pitches are arranged around the pitch axis of A4 Each downward reaching interval is replicated exactly in the opposite direction 17 Notes edit Bailey 1991 p 24 Wason 1987 p 74 a b Bailey 1998 p 151 Webern 1937 Eduard Steuermann gewidmet on frontispiece Bailey 1998 p 152 Burge 1980 Dates from Bailey 1991 p 452 Bailey 1998 p 152 a b Nolan 1995 pp 49 50 though her 0 is G and so she labels these two row forms P8 and I10 Leeuw 2005 p 158 for whom 0 E Bailey 1991 p 189 Bailey 1991 pp 189 190 a b Bailey 1991 p 190 Bailey 1991 p 191 Nelson 1969 a b Bailey 1991 p 192 Bailey 1991 pp 262 264 Sources Bailey Kathryn 1991 The Twelve note Music of Anton Webern Old Forms in a New Language Cambridge and New York Cambridge University Press ISBN 978 0 521 39088 0 Paperback reprint 2006 ISBN 978 0 521 54796 3 Bailey Kathryn 1998 The Life of Webern Cambridge University Press ISBN 978 0 521 57566 9 Burge David December 1980 Review Variationen fur Klavier Op 27 by Anton Webern Peter Stadlen Notes Second Series 37 2 405 406 doi 10 2307 939520 JSTOR 939520 Leeuw Ton de 2005 Music of the Twentieth Century A Study of Its Elements and Structure Translated by Stephen Taylor Amsterdam Amsterdam University Press ISBN 90 5356 765 8 Translation of Muziek van de twintigste eeuw een onderzoek naar haar elementen en structuur Utrecht Oosthoek 1964 Third impression Utrecht Bohn Scheltema amp Holkema 1977 ISBN 90 313 0244 9 Nelson Robert U Spring Summer 1969 Webern s Path to the Serial Variation Perspectives of New Music 7 2 73 93 doi 10 2307 832295 JSTOR 832295 Nolan Catherine Spring 1995 Structural Levels and Twelve Tone Music A Revisionist Analysis of the Second Movement of Webern s Piano Variations Op 27 Journal of Music Theory 39 1 47 76 doi 10 2307 843898 JSTOR 843898 Wason Robert W 1987 Webern s Variations for Piano Op 27 Musical Structure and the Performance Score Integral 1 57 103 Webern Anton 1937 Variationen fur Klavier Op 27 Vienna Universal Edition UE 10881 Further reading editBailey Kathryn Juni 1988 Willi Reich s Webern Tempo New Series no 165 Emigres and Internal Exiles pp 18 22 Fiori Mary E 1970 Webern s Use of Motive in the Piano Variations In Lincoln Harry B ed The Computer and Music pp 115 122 Ithaca Cornell University Press Jones James Rives Autumn Winter 1968 Some Aspects of Rhythm and Meter in Webern s Opus 27 Perspectives of New Music vol 7 no 1 pp 103 109 Leleu Jean Louis 1998 Intuition et esprit de systeme Reflexions sur le schema formel du deuxieme mouvement des Variations pour piano op 27 de Webern Revue belge de Musicologie Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap vol 52 pp 101 122 Lewin David October 1993 A Metrical Problem in Webern s Op 27 Music Analysis vol 12 no 3 pp 343 354 Moldenhauer Hans and Rosaleen Moldenhauer 1978 Anton von Webern A Chronicle of His Life and Work New York Alfred A Knopf ISBN 0 394 47237 3 London Gollancz ISBN 0 575 02436 4 Ogden Wilbur Spring 1962 A Webern Analysis Journal of Music Theory vol 6 no 1 pp 133 135 Stockhausen Karlheinz 1963 Gruppenkomposition Klavierstuck I Anleitung zum Horen In his Texte zur Musik vol 1 edited by Dieter Schnebel 63 74 DuMont Dokumente Cologne Verlag M DuMont Schauberg Travis Roy Spring Summer 1966 Directed Motion in Two Brief Piano Pieces by Schoenberg and Webern Perspectives of New Music 4 2 pp 85 89 Westergaard Peter Spring 1963 Webern and Total Organization an analysis of the Second Movement of Piano Variations op 27 Perspectives of New Music 1 2 pp 107 120 External links editA Metrical Analysis and Re notation of Webern s Variations for Piano 1st movement Joseph L Monzo 2010 tonalsoft com Performance of Variations for Piano by Jonathan Biss from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in MP3 format Portal nbsp Classical music Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Variations for piano Webern amp oldid 1144552361, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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