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1
) and positions 8 and
3
The simplest designatum ofthe term 'octatonic', introduced by Arthur Berger, is
the eight-note scale produced by alternating half and whole steps in the twelve-
note chromatic scale: see Arthur Berger, 'Problems of pitch organization in
Stravinsky', Perspectives of New Music2 (1963), pp. 11-42. The octatonic scale is
one ofMessiaen's'modes of limited transposition': see Olivier Messiaen,
Technique demon langage musical (Paris: A. Leduc, 1944). An earlier and little
known theoretical study of the octatonic scale is Vito Frazzi, Scale alternate per
pianoforte con diteggiature di Ernesto Consolo (Firenze: A Forlivesi & Co., 1930).
I am indebted to Mauro Calcagno for bringing this book to my attention. The
Russian manifestation of the acta tonic scale is covered in Richard Taruskin,
'Chernomor to Kashchei: harmonic sorcery; or Stravinsky's "angle"', JAMS 38
( 1985 ), pp. 72-142. See especially pp. 135ff on Rimsky's harmony textbook and
its close approach to the octatonic scale. For convenience in referring to
unordered pitch collections wiiliin the octatonic scale and 'unordered'
octatonic collections I will use the hyphenated set names that are no doubt
familiar to most readers [see Allen Forte, The Structure of Atonal Music (New
Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1973) -Ed.]. This facilitates access to
the complete array of forty set classes within the octatonic collection, 8-28, not
merely to the seven set classes whose representatives are formed as contiguous
elements of the octatonic scale.
75
ALLEN FORTE
,_4-.
~
t!
kling' '
,-3-,
.
:!] ,...._
-3-
"
-
t! .L:: :>
I r ~ ~
~ ~
:if:
f" . . r
-
. :
.u
ppp
: I
I :"' ..
:
: :
..,.._
.... ...
- - -
~ -
Example 3 Five songs, Op.4 no. I
I (bb
1
and b), the latter 'wrapping around' from the tail to the head of the
pitch-string. Two details are worth observing. First, the octatonic design
takes precedence over the text, since the final single-syllable word, 'kling'
(see Example 1) matches two notes, completing the regular pattern of the
melody. Second, and more important from the theoretical standpoint, one
note is required to complete the octatonic scale, an F.
4
The double-headed
arrow on Example 3 marks the dramatic appearance of that note in the low-
est register of the music. Example 3 also affords an opportunity for some
brief comments on the octatonic features of the closing passage, which it
depicts.
Letter A ofExample 3 refers to the very low bass F, the note required to
complete 8-28. Its connection with the vocal melody is made unequivocal:
4
The incomplete octatonic scale here is an instance of 7-31, the set class to which
any seven-note selection from the complete octatonic scale reduces. Although
the complete octatonic collection, a term that describes any ordering of all the
octatonic notes ('the octatonic' ), not merely the scalar ordering, contains only
one type of heptad, namely, 7-31, 7-31 itself is more gregarious; it belongs to four
otheroctads: 8-12,8-13,8-18 and 8-27. Thus, although the affirmation of an
octatonic presence in the absence of the complete octatonic ( 8-28) might seem
problematic, it should be recalled that the subset classes of 7-31 are identical to
those of8-28, which is not true for the otheroctads listed above.Accordingly,
heptad 7-31 possesses indefeasible credentials as 8-28's primary surrogate.
76
----
1
:_.. '.. .. !
l
r'!
1-.1
THE GOLDEN THREAD: ANTON WEBERN'S EARLY SONGS
it corresponds temporallywith the final melodic note b
1
, as indicated by the
double-headed arrow. And in the schematic scalar form of the octatonic
(Example 2b) fl occupies a position exactly analogous to b
1
, as the headnote
of the second tetrachord (order position 5).
Readers may notice that the descant of the piano part in the closing
music (Example 3) looks suspiciously octatonic, and, indeed, the four
notes d
1
-e
1
-f'-g
1
correspond exactly to those in successive positions 3, 4, 5
and 6 of the schematic octatonic scale, Example 2b. But letter B of Example
3 refers to the one note ofthe piano descant that does not fit that scalar pat-
tern,d#1. In fact,D#(or any of its enharmonic equivalents) does not belong
to this form of the octatonic at all, but to octatonic collection II or 111.
5
Here, of necessity, we confront the unpleasant reality that not all of
Webern's early songs fit the octatonic paradigm neatly- a considerable dis-
appointment to the ever-hopeful analyst. But later in this article I will sug-
gest ways in which various kinds of non-octatonic elements do relate
perspicuously to the octatonic thread.
Returning now to the non-octatonic pitch d #
1
at letter B of Example
3, I point out that the errant note contributes to a salient harmonic feature
here: the exchange of dyads C-E and B-D #above the low bass F, fulfilling a
local function. These dyads together form tetrachord 4-7, a member of one
of the symmetric tetrachord classes that are such a pervasive feature of this
early atonal music by Webern and which, as here, interrupt or otherwise
'interfere' with octatonic continuities, often creating an expressive apo-
siopesis. Indeed, one is tempted to say that these symmetric tetrachords
may momentarily 'conceal' the golden octatonic thread, but, as I shall
5
I follow Pieter van den Toorn's labelling, with reordering for mnemonic
convenience, so that pitch class 1 begins Collection I, and so on: see van den
Toorn, The Musicofigor Stravinsky(New Haven and London: Yale University
Press, 1983 ). For each example, the relevant forms of the octatonic scale
are reproduced in small notation so that the reader can locate the pitch
configurations under discussion in the music, if he or she so desires.
Collection I (Cl): 1,2,4,5, 7,8, 10, II
Collection II (CII): 2,3,5,6,8, 9, II,O
Collection lll (Clll): 3,4,6, 7, 9, 10,0, I
The abbreviated forms ( Cl, Cll, Clll) will be used hereafter.
77
ALLEN FORTE
suggest later on, their constituent enantiomorphic dyads may often relate
directly to an underlying structure that comprises more than one form of
the octatonic.
In the music that begins at letter C of Example 3, however, the acta-
tonic music returns to complete the song. Here, over low bass E, which
strongly suggests a local E major tonic function (but one that would be
difficult to verify in the song as a whole) are two changes of vertical har-
mony. The first of these (letter C) is an instance of octatonic pentad 5-32,
while the second (letter D), corresponding to the change from fl tog' in the
descant, is letter C's inversion, as T
0
1, in John Rahn's notation. In terms of
total sonority these bars produce octatonic hexachord 6-z49, a favourite of
Debussy's, and the first hexachord of the subject ofWebern's Passacaglia,
Op.I.
Before leaving this song, I should point out that the low bass succes-
sion shown in Example 3, F-E, completes a tetrachord that began in the
extreme low register at the end of b. 9, with the onset of a new stanza of the
poem ('Schauernde Kuhle .. :). The complete tetrachord is D-C#-F-E,
which, of course, is a fragment of octatonic collection I, shown in scalar
form in Example 2b, where it occupies positions 3-2-5-4: the dyads
remain intact, while their components exchange positions.
7
In the remainder of this article I will illustrate and discuss other modes
in which the octatonic thread pervades the early songs of Webern. At this
juncture, however, it seems appropriate to enquire when the octatonic music
first begins to appear in his songs. While I do not claim a definitive answer to
this interesting and provocative question, I feel secure in stating that his song
6
See Allen Forte, 'Debussy and the octatonic', Music Analysis 10/1-2 ( 1991), pp.
125-69. The correspondence to the Passacaglia is interesting, but probably
nugatory. Nor is myreferenceto Debussy intended to imply a historical
connection.
7
Manipulations of this kind may remind the reader ofWebern's serial music. It is
with some reservations that I mention this, because efforts to relate this early
music to twelve-note music have taken some unusual forms in the literature.
See for example Elmar Budde, Anton Weberns Lieder Op.3: Untersuchungen zur
friihenAtonalitat bei Webern (Wiesbaden: Franz Steiner Verlag GMBH, 1971 ),
pp.68ff, where Budde illustrates the notion of Klangzentrum with the opening
sonorityof0p.3 no.4, octatonic pentad 5-19,a favourite ofWebern's in these
early songs.
78
THE GOLDEN THREAD: ANTON WEBERN'S EARLY SONGS
'I deale Landschaft', one of the five songs on texts by Richard Dehmel, com-
posed between 1906 and 1908, is at least a very early instance of octatonic
penetration, perhaps representing an effort by the fledgling composer to
exert control over non-tonal pitch resources within an ostensibly tonal
music.
The Dehmel songs
'!deale Landschaft', the earliest of the Dehmel songs, dating from
spring of 1906, bears a key signature of one sharp and is presumably in E
major/minor, judging from the final cadence. The song, over which loom
heavily the shadows of Brahms and Wolf, is replete with those familiar
standbys 'foreground chromaticism' and 'whole-tone' formations and
exhibits clearly defined tonal progressions, as in bs 23-8, where the bass
slowly ascends by step from dominant to tonic. For Webern, the generally
tonal ambience apparently did not, however, rule out the inclusion of acta-
tonic music, and although it is not abundantly represented it is certainly
present in this early song.
In comparison to those in the later of the early songs, such as the pas-
sage discussed in connection with the preceding examples, the octatonic
infusions of'Ideale Landschaft' are deceptively'na'ive'. Example 4 shows a
representative octatonic section in the piano part ofbs 15-17.
a
Example4 '!deale Landschaft' (Dehmellieder)
79
ALLEN FORTE
Here (in Example 4) the descant is pure octatonic, presenting CI in its
entirety, except for G #I Only two segments of the melody are taken
directly from the ordered octatonic scale: c#
1
-b' and f#
1
-e
1
-d
1
, which are
adjacent in the melody (see letter A). The second of these segments is par-
ticularly prominent, occurring twice, in ascending and descending direc-
tions, at the end of the passage (letter B), withE #replacing F as theE major
key orientation strongly suggests an altered submediant function (VI'').
In addition, the bass of the passage outlines a diminished triad,
marked by asterisks, which also belongs to CI, and, in fact, only
two notes in the entire passage are not members of that form of the octa-
tonic: C and F # in the first bar of theleft -hand figuration (letter C). This
anomaly (if our octatonic perspective is viable) suggests a closer look.
Accordingly, Example 5 reproduces the entire passage.
With the addition of the vocal line (see Example 5) we see that the
octatonic passage sets a full line of the poem, undergirding the text 'und eine
hohe Abendklarheit war' (and there was an elevated evening transparency).
The vocal line is also octatonic, but in a more intricate way. Letter A applies
to the bracketed melodic succession that ends on the peak note of the
phrase, d
2
(setting the text vowel 'If). This segment of the melody derives
.
I"
""
0
und ei -
@]
loe ,..
v
w
a
en
A
[9
bend- k.lar- hcit war
..._ !!' loe
n,
........ ,;
""
.........
ExampleS '!deale Landschaft' (Oehme! lieder)
80
THE GOLDEN THREAD: ANTON WEBERN'S EARLY SONGS
from adjacent positions 6, 7, 8 and 1 ofCII,as can be seen by inspecting the
scalar presentation of CII in small notation on the example. Letter C of
Example 5 designates the final tetrachord of the phrase, which derives from
positions 4, 5, 6 and 7 of CI, reordered as 7-4-5--6. This is a tetrachord of
type 4-10, just as is the first tetrachord (at A). With regard to the scalar
arrangement of the octatonic, tetrachord A preserves the dyads, but reverses
the position of their elements, while tetrachord B is a circular permutation
of its scalar model. The melodic segment designated by letter B ofExample 5
incorporates the peak note d
2
, which belongs both to CI and to en, forming
octatonic pentad 5-25. It is important to point out that 5-25 is not formed
entirely from adjacent scalar elements, but incorporates one non-adjacent
note, namely, d
2
Octatonic components of this type are called 'unordered',
since not all of their notes are adjacent with reference to the scalar model.
8
Finally, letter D of Example 5 delimits the configuration that incor-
porates the fractious c' and f#exposed earlier at letter C of Example 4. This,
again, is an unordered subset of the octatonic. Since its notes can be located
in CII in positions I, 3, 4, 7 and 8, this part of the accompaniment groups
harmonically with the first tetrachord of the vocal line, also drawn from
CII. Together they form 6-z50, one of the more exotic of unordered octa-
tonic hexachords.
Thus Example 5 illustrates one way in which We bern combines com-
ponents from two forms of the octatonic, in this case from Collections I and
II. It also shows the role that unordered sets may play in his idiomatic
exploitation of the special musical properties oftheoctatonic.
The octatonic music of Example 5 is by no means isolated in this early
song. In Example 6, also drawn from '!deale Landschaft', we hear a four-bar
melodic succession based entirely upon octatonic segments that set a com-
plete line of the poem, 'und sahst nur immer weg von mir' (and you looked
ever away from me) and the beginning of a short line that features the
8
I have placed the commonly used term 'unordered' within single quotation
marks here to remind myself and the reader that considerations of ordering are
usually important to the analyses of the 'unordered' sets.
9
Hexachord 6-zSO, not one of the stellar subsets of the octatonic, does play a
major role in Stravinsky's Le Roi des Etoiles ( 1912 ). In this connection, I should
say that I rule Stravinsky out as a possible influence on We bern's octatonic
usage. The musical differences are multiple and striking.
81
ALLEN FORTE
UDd solstnur im- mer Weg __ _ von mir,ins Licht, ____ _
-- --------- --
- .:;:-...- .... t==
I<> -- --
em
.bh>
Cl
Example 6 '!deale Landschaft' (Dehmellieder)
keyword 'Licht' (light). This passage contains yet another subtlety of
Webern's octatonic usage. The first melodic segment (letter A) projects an
unordered pentad, 5-19 from CIII, but emphasises its contiguous subsets,
c'-c#
1
and f#'-g-a'. In contrast, the second segment (letter B), which is a
form ofhexachord 6-z23 from Cl, occurs naturally as an ordered segment in
the scalar octatonic. Webern's deployment of the hexachord, however,
emphasises its symmetric design about the two trichords of type 3-2, b
1
-
c#1....d2 and g
2
-fl-e', but conceals, by inversion, the contiguity of its elements
in the underlying scalar model. Moreover, the headnote of the second 3-2
trichord, g', sets 'Licht' and initiates the symmetric rhythmic pattern
minim- crotchet-crotchet-minim that returns the line to its point of origin,
b, thus lending a special weight to that pitch and suggesting further investi-
gation of its melodic role in the context of a more extensive analysis.
As will become evident in the context of the remainder of this article,
the octatonic music in '!deale Landschaft' is not only strikingly original and
interesting in itself but also stunningly proleptic. In the songs that We bern
wrote after '!deale Landschaft' we hear more complex modes of octatonic
infusion as he combines forms of the octatonic and introduces other sonic
10
Hexachords of classes 6-z23 and 6-zl3 are the only such that can occur as
ordered subsets of six elements in the octatonic scale. Therefore, their presence
in one of the songs may be a strong indication of an underlying scalar octatonic
model. !.ike each of three other hexachordal subsets of octatonic octad 8-28,
6-z!3 and 6-z23 occur four times as subsets. One hexachord, 6-27, enjoys a
privileged relation with 8-28, occurring eight times as one of its subsets.
82
THE GOLDEN THREAD: ANTON WEBERN'S EARLY SONGS
A
...
"'
I
A
"'
..
1"".
=i==__ -- I -\&
Cl
b !e qu
CD
- - __, _,_ I lu
'!'"' lii3<i ..,... - - -
em
Example 7 'Helle Nacht' (Dehmellieder)
domains, often proceeding directlyfrom octatonic components. The piano
introduction to the last and most complicated of the five Dehmel songs,
'Helle Nacht' ( 1908), illustrates."
Item A of Example 7 is an unordered pentad from CIII, 5-16, within
which is 4-17 (A'), about to become the first tetrachord of the vocal line
(not shown). The configuration can also be parsed into two horizontal
tetrachords, with 4-z29 on top and 4-12 on the bottom, the latter clearly
derived from ordered positions in the scalar model. These too become
important 'subjects' in the later contrapuntal music of the song, especially
4-z29.
Segment B ofExample 7 is an ordered transposition of the music of A,
thusashifttoCII.In the left-hand partofb.1 ofExample7 (letter C) we find
4-z15 from CI, consisting of the dyad in scalar order-positions 5-4 above
the dyad in scalar order-positions 7-8, thus revealing a close affinity to the
'' The date of this song, 1908, suggests comparison with Schoenberg's lieder of the
same period, notably those of Op.15: see Allen Forte, 'Concepts oflinearity in
Schoenberg's atonal music: a study of the Opus 15 song cycle', Journal of Music
Theory36/2 (Fall1992), pp. 285-382.
83
ALLEN FORTE
scalar model.'' The letter D tetrachord transposes C to III. As a result of
these combinations the introduction is something of an octatonic farrago,
awaiting clarification in the main part of the song.
Finally, item E of Example 7 is an instance of tetrachord 4-8, a
distinctly non-octatonic harmony. But its connection to the preceding
octatonic material could not be clearer, since the upper dyad, f#
1
-d
1
,
repeats the preceding f #'-d' and the lower dyad, c#--g, repeats the preceding
c#
1
-g'. Thus, non-octatonic tetrachord 4-8 partakes of two forms of the
octatonic, CII and CIII.
13
Four George songs
In 1965 Hans Moldenhauer discovered four unpublished songs by
Webern on texts by Stefan George that the composer had presumably
intended to publish along with his Op.3 and Op.4 lieder. According to
Moldenhauer Webern wrote out two of these in large notation for perfor-
mance, indicating that he was completely satisfied with them. One of the
two songs, 'Trauer I', is heavily, but by no means exclusively, octatonic.
The opening music of 'Trauer I' (see Example 8) engages two forms of
the octatonic, CI and CII. Right at the outset two pentads from those model
structures intertwine. Letter A of Example 8 designates pentad 5-19 of CII:
the first vertical and the rest of the triplet figure, which is the most obvious
octatonic scalar token. The other pentad, 5-28 of CI, consists of the upper
two notes of the first chord, the second chord and the last two notes of the
triplet. Pentad 5-19 then connects to the opening notes of the vocal line,
which comprises tetrachord 4-3 (letter C), to complete 7-31 of CII on
as marked by the down arrow. With the return of the opening configura-
tion, yet another form of 5-19 materialises as T
6
of the first form, delimited
by letter D of Example 8
(letter B), in the context of en (see Example 12).
Within that trichord (3-8)
completes 7-31 ofeni. If the downstemmed
a
1
of b. 2 in the voice part were to be included, violating the rule that
excludes singletons from collection membership, a complete form of8-28
would result.
At letter e of Example 13 the lower voice reiterates a trichord from
the first vertical in the piano accompaniment, while the bass projects e-d,
initially heard, reversed, as the upper voice of the opening chord succes-
sion. A fragment of em then appears at the end of b. 3 (letter D), ending
on a
2
, the note withheld from the collection in the descant of the accompa-
niment.
In the second part of Example 13, at the beginning of the third line of
the text, em comes into its own in the vocal melodic line (letter E).
Excluding
d
2
and fl, the line projects 7-31. These excluded notes, which
could belong either to ei or to en, cannot be effectively explained in isola-
tion, but need to be integrated into the entire line. Two readings that do this
are presented in Example 14 for the reader's consideration.
At letter F of Example 13 the lower parts are composed entirely of ele-
ments of en I. From the full notation in Example I 0 it is apparent that the
lower parts above the bass comprise two strands, the upper of which pro-
jects
1
, a reference to the opening harmony of the song and one of
the few'motives' in this essentially athematic work.
In the climactic music at letter G of Example 13 em dominates the
piano accompaniment, excluding only two notes, f
2
and