CM Assignment 2: Serialism's Influence on Contemporary Music

by Adam Newell

Serialism is a compositional technique that makes use of interpreting a series of numbers, usually randomly generated, into certain musical elements, such as pitch, duration, rhythm, etc., to form musical pieces. The technique became established with the introduction of Schoenberg’s atonal 12-tone row in 1920’s[1], liberating composers of tonal conventions.

Olivier Messiaen has used serialism in his compositions and made use of tone rows. However, he has used them in a different way than originally conceived by Schoenberg; rather than comprising the whole score of twelve-tone rows, he has used them to flourish and create contrast in the piece, which he refers to as “coloured” and “non-serial” in spirit.[2] He also considered that tonal, modal or serial composers did not exist and that music was either with or without colour.[3] Messiaen is credited, among other things, for the production of total serialism, which makes use series and serialism to control other elements of music, such duration, dynamics, timbre and register[4]. One piece that was acclaimed for by critics for being the starting point for total serialism is Mode de valeurs et d'intensités, with which Messiaen had expressed annoyance over the credibility given.[5]

One of Messiaen’s pupils, Karlheinz Stockhauzen, is a well-known avant-garde composer that also used serialism in a different way. Such serial works as Kreuzspiel, Klavierstücke I-IV and Kontra-Punkte, took some inspiration from his mentor.[6] Due to Messiaen’s piece mentioned earlier, Stockhausen was influenced to compose Kreuzspiel, similarly employing the total serialism of Messiaen’s piece. [7] Stockhausen’s early works also exhibited elements of punctualism, which Stockhausen (1998) simply explained: “Music that consists of separately formed particles - however complexly these may be composed - (is called) punctual music, as opposed to linear, or group-formed, or mass-formed music.”[8] One such example is Kontra-Punkte; compared to Punkte, which uses punctualism to organise single notes as units, Kontra-Punkte contained large units, such as melodic lines, chord progressions and rhythmic sections, which were then arranged in a similar manor. This is closer to what is normally understood to be musical in terms of structure.[9] Both Messiaen and Stockhausen are interested in developed serialism; Messiaen has said that he does not consider Schoenberg’s serial works entirely successful, unlike Schoenberg’s student, Anton Webern, whom Messiaen had considered to have greater success in serialism.[10]

Bibliography:

Books:

Samuel, C. 1986 (Translation 1994), Olivier Messiaen: Music and Colour, First Edition 1994, Amadeus Press, Portland, Oregon, USA

Whittall, A. 2008, The Cambridge Introduction to Serialism, Cambridge University Press, New York

Harvey, J. 1975, The Music of Stockhausen: An Introduction, University of California Press, Los Angeles USA, viewed on 1^st May 2011 <http://books.google.com.au/books?id=wtldEmoFR-MC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false>

Stockhausen, K. 1998, Stockhausen: Texte zur Musik 1984–1991, vol. 9, Kürten: Stockhausen-Verlag.

Websites:

Arnold Schönberg Centre, n.d., Schönberg: Biography 1918 – 1932, viewed 1^st May 2011 <http://www.schoenberg.at/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=162&Itemid=198&lang=en&limitstart=2>

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[1] Arnold Schönberg Centre, n.d., Schönberg: Biography 1918 – 1932, viewed 1^st May 2011 <http://www.schoenberg.at/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=162&Itemid=198&lang=en&limitstart=2>

[2] Samuel, C. 1986 (Translation 1994), ‘From Technique to Emotion’ Olivier Messiaen: Music and Colour, First Edition 1994, Amadeus Press, Portland, Oregon, USA p. 49

[3] Samuel, C. 1986 p. 63

[4] Whittall, A. 2008, The Cambridge Introduction to Serialism, Cambridge University Press, New York, p. 273.

[5] Samuel, C. 1986 p. 47

[6] Harvey, J. 1975, ‘Chapter 2: Kreuzspiel’ The Music of Stockhausen: An Introduction, University of California Press, Los Angeles USA, viewed on 1^st May 2011 <http://books.google.com.au/books?id=wtldEmoFR-MC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false>

[7] Harvey, J. 1975, p. 15.

[8] Stockhausen, K. 1998, ‘Es geht aufwärts’, Stockhausen: Texte zur Musik 1984–1991, vol. 9, pp. 391–512, Kürten: Stockhausen-Verlag.

[9] Harvey, J. 1975, p. 21.

[10] Samuel, C. 1986, p. 50