The Canadian Opera Company is just finishing up their run of one of the 20th Century’s most intriguing operas, Alban Berg’s Wozzeck (1925), adapted from Georg Büchner’s play Woyzeck. It is a three-act atonal opera that chronicles the tragic descent of Franz Wozzeck, a poor soldier in a 19th-century German town.
Wow! What masterful storytelling Todd. I was exposed to Alban Berg in a high school music class and developed a distaste for early 20th-century, atonal music. However, after reading your wonderful precis I can appreciate, in a way I couldn't as a teenager, how that form of classical music perfectly reflects the nature of the story being told. Having said that, I still couldn't sit through an atonal opera so I'll appreciate the story vicariously through you.
Matt Taibbi and Walter Kirn (Racket News) spent quite a bit of time dissecting that Policy Horizon's Canada dystopian paper a couple of weeks ago and it's worth a listen. They concluded, and I concurred, that in some respects we're already living that 2040 nightmare. It's gobsmacking that a government-adjacent think tank would allow such a paper to see the light of day, as if the Liberal government had absolutely nothing to do with Canada's precipitous decline. That's how bloody arrogant these demons are. I guess they know people don't read or pay attention and that Canadians are among the most propagandized people on earth. Clearly we haven't reached rock bottom yet and the addiction to the nanny state shows no signs of abating. My husband and I are likely going to secure another residency in Panama in addition to our Mexican residency -- a Plan C if you like. I just wish my kids would fully wake up but perhaps they've already accepted the fact they will not meet or exceed our socio-economic level...at least not until we die (assuming some government somewhere hasn't stripped us of our assets). The only bit of good news from our recent "selection" is that the generational divide was pronounced and young people voted for less government. It's too bad their boomer parents and grandparents sold them down the river again, just as they did during the scamdemic.
Canadasceptic, some people refer to the happenings in the last 5 years as dystopian. I think you state a valid reasoning how we are already living some of the 2040 agenda. And "selection" is exactly what happened last week and the boomer group clapped all the way through it. :(
Undoubtedly, we ARE living some of the 2040 agenda...but like the slow boiling frog, most people do not know and/or do not acknowledge it...it is all "business as usual"...and "has always been this way"...and if they do acknowledge restrictions creeping up on them, they just attribute it to the price we have to pay for progress...or the penalty we have to pay for messing up the environment, and destroying the climate.
Ha!! I doubt if there are many who were introduced to atonal music at a young age appreciate it! It kind of goes against nature, and that was essentially the impetus behind its development—to consciously move against the tonal propensity of expectation. The composers wanted to be completely free of natures pull, which, as we know now, is seldom a good idea.
Still, the style does allow for things creatively that tonal music never allowed for. We have become more accustomed to its special effects because 12-tone and atonality in general (they are slightly different in their application, 12-tone is atonal, but atonal is not necessarily 12-tone) has been used in cinema and television for decades.
I was trained as a 12-tone composer, but never really got into it, although again I find it interesting. I did not think I would be able to sit through 2 hours of Wozzeck either, but the style of composition was so in line with the drama it just worked...I didn't grow tired of it at all. Now, if the opera were a romantic comedy, or just filled with beautiful visuals and narrative, I doubt if it would have worked as well to my ears.
Although Berg studied 12-tone composition with Schönberg, "Wozzeck" is not strictly 12-tone...some of his motifs undoubtedly are, but he deviates from the system quite often, and some sections are decidedly tonal. In my personal opinion, this is really how the 12-tone technique should be used...just another tool in the compositional tool box, which includes atonal, 12-tone, as well as tonal modalities.
Since I am also a "music nerd", and not fond at all of 12 tone, nor any atonal music, my question to you is: Is the "medium" of atonal music "necessary" to convey the essence of Wozzeck's story? Could a composer create an opera telling the same exact story and conveying the same ideas using tonal music?
I think for today’s listeners, probably so (having atonal music as an available palette for composition today). We have become sophisticated in our listening even though most are not aware of it. We hear atonal music all of the time in TV and film, even occasionally in pop music. But we would not identify it as such.
If we are talking “tonal” music there is an infinite variety of such music throughout history. Are we talking Bach tonal? Beethoven tonal? Debussy tonal? Stravinsky tonal? All of these composers wrote tonal music, but as we advanced through the centuries, composers took more and more liberties with it…and maybe even by the time we hit Debussy and Stravinsky calling it tonal is a stretch. And believe me, during Debussy’s and Stravinsky’s time their music was considered an assault to the ears, and an artistic abomination!
Atonal music, and 12 tone or serial music, came primarily at the turn of the century, and opened up a whole new palette of exploration for composers. As I said, strictly 12 tone and serial music is so rigid and formulaic there is not much that people can grasp except maybe from a purely intellectual level. Berg’s Wozzeck offers lots of atonal dissonant stuff that fits the dissonant and dark narrative very well, but he also has touching and emotional content where he settles on a more right brain method of writing. And in some passages you could even call it tonal (there is even a key signature!)
Could Wozzeck be written effectively in Bach’s time with his palette of harmony and melody? I doubt it. First of all, no one would set such a dark narrative to music. Sure, there was murder, and evil, back then in opera and other staged productions (what about plays like Macbeth!??) and sure, you could set it tonal music, but I think on today’s ears it would fall short…it would be historically interesting (I wish I could give some examples but my memory of musical repertoire has faded!) Believe it or not our “musical sensibilities” have matured a bit since 1700, whether we know it or not!
Keep in mind as well, tonal music only means it follows a typical harmonic and melodic propensity to move in certain directions, and it is typically tertian (built in thirds). Certain chords resolve in certain ways, and melodies follow certain “key centres”.
You can build a 12 tone row that can sound very melodious, and actually seem “tonal”…of course this sort of writing was/is verboten in strict 12-tone composition, because even if you “implied” tonality, you were breaking the rules. That doesn’t mean it was not done, and I think you probably can find examples of this “rule bending” in Wozzeck.
Yes, as you illustrate, the separation of music in a simple "binary" of tonal or atonal can be a complicated matter. Maybe oversimplifying, I think of music as "tonal" when there is a feeling of "center" or "home" (maybe even Debussy... not sure about Stravinski ;-) ....also maybe a melody that is "singable". We usually remember singable operatic arias. When I think about atonal music in film or TV, I think about music that is used mostly to create or promote an emotional response or mood, not necessarily a singable tune. It is difficult for me to imagine an atonal opera. But maybe such a language is necessary to convey the emotional state of Wozzeck's tragedy. Therefore my question.
‘"And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all. And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, the Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears." "In this world you will have tribulation. But be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world." Keep the faith.
"Overcoming the world" to me means "overcoming the importance of materialism". This means the wealthy, the opulent, the powerful, the elite, should not find dominion over the less fortunate, nor exploit them, nor cause their suffering. It does not mean they are intrinsically bad or evil as humans, but if they have more possessions (material) it does not make them better, or more worthy.
Humans have never seemed to deal with this properly, and are typically transformed by material possession into evil, abusive, beings. Again, these humans are not intrinsically evil, but making materiality the most important element of their human lives tends to shift their allegiance to evil and to satan (metaphorically or literally, take your pick). This doesn't happen all of the time, there are notable exceptions throughout history, but it is statistically probable.
Thank you for sharing your account of Wozzeck's Nightmare. It sounds very dark and very real in today's terms. Also very interesting. Often these plays or even television shows/movies are based on some reality of the day. Poor Wozzeck. There is such a lack of morality today, heightened greed, homelessness, mental illness, addiction, suicide, the slippery slope of medical assistance in dying, lack of spiritual connection, too much connection with 'devices', indoctrination of children and adults, more government and societal control by shaming and coercion, more pushing of pharma drugs and jabs, mainstream media bias, and a host more I am sure if I took more time to think about it.
Someone posted about the Cloward-Piven Theory (in something else I was reading) and who was one of the people involved in that? No other than the Aunt of Mark Carney's wife. Almost half of the voters voted in this guy who is slick, thinking he is going to save us. Little do they know that he will do so by enslaving us (my opinion).
I think these attributes of humans, greed, lack of morality, etc., have been around since the onset of humanity, it seems it is of a different nature today. It is more deceitful (kings in the past had no problem inflicting misery on his subjects) more global (never before has evil taken such a large number of people under its power) and more psychological (persuading people to metaphorically jump off a cliff, i.e., vote for Carney.) This truly is the ultimate "good against evil" from a spiritual perspective we have ever seen.
Wow! What masterful storytelling Todd. I was exposed to Alban Berg in a high school music class and developed a distaste for early 20th-century, atonal music. However, after reading your wonderful precis I can appreciate, in a way I couldn't as a teenager, how that form of classical music perfectly reflects the nature of the story being told. Having said that, I still couldn't sit through an atonal opera so I'll appreciate the story vicariously through you.
Matt Taibbi and Walter Kirn (Racket News) spent quite a bit of time dissecting that Policy Horizon's Canada dystopian paper a couple of weeks ago and it's worth a listen. They concluded, and I concurred, that in some respects we're already living that 2040 nightmare. It's gobsmacking that a government-adjacent think tank would allow such a paper to see the light of day, as if the Liberal government had absolutely nothing to do with Canada's precipitous decline. That's how bloody arrogant these demons are. I guess they know people don't read or pay attention and that Canadians are among the most propagandized people on earth. Clearly we haven't reached rock bottom yet and the addiction to the nanny state shows no signs of abating. My husband and I are likely going to secure another residency in Panama in addition to our Mexican residency -- a Plan C if you like. I just wish my kids would fully wake up but perhaps they've already accepted the fact they will not meet or exceed our socio-economic level...at least not until we die (assuming some government somewhere hasn't stripped us of our assets). The only bit of good news from our recent "selection" is that the generational divide was pronounced and young people voted for less government. It's too bad their boomer parents and grandparents sold them down the river again, just as they did during the scamdemic.
Canadasceptic, some people refer to the happenings in the last 5 years as dystopian. I think you state a valid reasoning how we are already living some of the 2040 agenda. And "selection" is exactly what happened last week and the boomer group clapped all the way through it. :(
Undoubtedly, we ARE living some of the 2040 agenda...but like the slow boiling frog, most people do not know and/or do not acknowledge it...it is all "business as usual"...and "has always been this way"...and if they do acknowledge restrictions creeping up on them, they just attribute it to the price we have to pay for progress...or the penalty we have to pay for messing up the environment, and destroying the climate.
It is the price we pay for 'security' they tell us Or for 'protecting' the environment or any other hair-brained plan they hatch.
The masses are so easy to manipulate...human nature...no one (or few) say "wha???"
Totally. The general sheep just take it and look at us like we should all be wearing tin hats. I really ought to make myself one LOL
Ha!! I doubt if there are many who were introduced to atonal music at a young age appreciate it! It kind of goes against nature, and that was essentially the impetus behind its development—to consciously move against the tonal propensity of expectation. The composers wanted to be completely free of natures pull, which, as we know now, is seldom a good idea.
Still, the style does allow for things creatively that tonal music never allowed for. We have become more accustomed to its special effects because 12-tone and atonality in general (they are slightly different in their application, 12-tone is atonal, but atonal is not necessarily 12-tone) has been used in cinema and television for decades.
I was trained as a 12-tone composer, but never really got into it, although again I find it interesting. I did not think I would be able to sit through 2 hours of Wozzeck either, but the style of composition was so in line with the drama it just worked...I didn't grow tired of it at all. Now, if the opera were a romantic comedy, or just filled with beautiful visuals and narrative, I doubt if it would have worked as well to my ears.
Although Berg studied 12-tone composition with Schönberg, "Wozzeck" is not strictly 12-tone...some of his motifs undoubtedly are, but he deviates from the system quite often, and some sections are decidedly tonal. In my personal opinion, this is really how the 12-tone technique should be used...just another tool in the compositional tool box, which includes atonal, 12-tone, as well as tonal modalities.
Very interesting Todd! I appreciate this explanation.
Sorry, I got into my "music nerd" mode!
Since I am also a "music nerd", and not fond at all of 12 tone, nor any atonal music, my question to you is: Is the "medium" of atonal music "necessary" to convey the essence of Wozzeck's story? Could a composer create an opera telling the same exact story and conveying the same ideas using tonal music?
I think for today’s listeners, probably so (having atonal music as an available palette for composition today). We have become sophisticated in our listening even though most are not aware of it. We hear atonal music all of the time in TV and film, even occasionally in pop music. But we would not identify it as such.
If we are talking “tonal” music there is an infinite variety of such music throughout history. Are we talking Bach tonal? Beethoven tonal? Debussy tonal? Stravinsky tonal? All of these composers wrote tonal music, but as we advanced through the centuries, composers took more and more liberties with it…and maybe even by the time we hit Debussy and Stravinsky calling it tonal is a stretch. And believe me, during Debussy’s and Stravinsky’s time their music was considered an assault to the ears, and an artistic abomination!
Atonal music, and 12 tone or serial music, came primarily at the turn of the century, and opened up a whole new palette of exploration for composers. As I said, strictly 12 tone and serial music is so rigid and formulaic there is not much that people can grasp except maybe from a purely intellectual level. Berg’s Wozzeck offers lots of atonal dissonant stuff that fits the dissonant and dark narrative very well, but he also has touching and emotional content where he settles on a more right brain method of writing. And in some passages you could even call it tonal (there is even a key signature!)
Could Wozzeck be written effectively in Bach’s time with his palette of harmony and melody? I doubt it. First of all, no one would set such a dark narrative to music. Sure, there was murder, and evil, back then in opera and other staged productions (what about plays like Macbeth!??) and sure, you could set it tonal music, but I think on today’s ears it would fall short…it would be historically interesting (I wish I could give some examples but my memory of musical repertoire has faded!) Believe it or not our “musical sensibilities” have matured a bit since 1700, whether we know it or not!
Keep in mind as well, tonal music only means it follows a typical harmonic and melodic propensity to move in certain directions, and it is typically tertian (built in thirds). Certain chords resolve in certain ways, and melodies follow certain “key centres”.
You can build a 12 tone row that can sound very melodious, and actually seem “tonal”…of course this sort of writing was/is verboten in strict 12-tone composition, because even if you “implied” tonality, you were breaking the rules. That doesn’t mean it was not done, and I think you probably can find examples of this “rule bending” in Wozzeck.
Yes, as you illustrate, the separation of music in a simple "binary" of tonal or atonal can be a complicated matter. Maybe oversimplifying, I think of music as "tonal" when there is a feeling of "center" or "home" (maybe even Debussy... not sure about Stravinski ;-) ....also maybe a melody that is "singable". We usually remember singable operatic arias. When I think about atonal music in film or TV, I think about music that is used mostly to create or promote an emotional response or mood, not necessarily a singable tune. It is difficult for me to imagine an atonal opera. But maybe such a language is necessary to convey the emotional state of Wozzeck's tragedy. Therefore my question.
‘"And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all. And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, the Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears." "In this world you will have tribulation. But be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world." Keep the faith.
"Overcoming the world" to me means "overcoming the importance of materialism". This means the wealthy, the opulent, the powerful, the elite, should not find dominion over the less fortunate, nor exploit them, nor cause their suffering. It does not mean they are intrinsically bad or evil as humans, but if they have more possessions (material) it does not make them better, or more worthy.
Humans have never seemed to deal with this properly, and are typically transformed by material possession into evil, abusive, beings. Again, these humans are not intrinsically evil, but making materiality the most important element of their human lives tends to shift their allegiance to evil and to satan (metaphorically or literally, take your pick). This doesn't happen all of the time, there are notable exceptions throughout history, but it is statistically probable.
Thank you for sharing your account of Wozzeck's Nightmare. It sounds very dark and very real in today's terms. Also very interesting. Often these plays or even television shows/movies are based on some reality of the day. Poor Wozzeck. There is such a lack of morality today, heightened greed, homelessness, mental illness, addiction, suicide, the slippery slope of medical assistance in dying, lack of spiritual connection, too much connection with 'devices', indoctrination of children and adults, more government and societal control by shaming and coercion, more pushing of pharma drugs and jabs, mainstream media bias, and a host more I am sure if I took more time to think about it.
Someone posted about the Cloward-Piven Theory (in something else I was reading) and who was one of the people involved in that? No other than the Aunt of Mark Carney's wife. Almost half of the voters voted in this guy who is slick, thinking he is going to save us. Little do they know that he will do so by enslaving us (my opinion).
I think these attributes of humans, greed, lack of morality, etc., have been around since the onset of humanity, it seems it is of a different nature today. It is more deceitful (kings in the past had no problem inflicting misery on his subjects) more global (never before has evil taken such a large number of people under its power) and more psychological (persuading people to metaphorically jump off a cliff, i.e., vote for Carney.) This truly is the ultimate "good against evil" from a spiritual perspective we have ever seen.
Yes I agree it is a spiritual battle thrust upon us. Thanks for provoking deeper thought with this article. :)