From the Sound Atom to the Organism: Chromatic Interconnections in Anton Webern’s Op. 10

Anton Webern’s Orchestral Pieces, Op. 10, rank among the most concentrated and, at the same time, most influential musical expressions of the early 20th century. These extremely condensed miniatures reveal a compositional approach that creates an organic network of relationships from precisely determined sound elements—a structural dynamic that characteristically reflects the aesthetic and social upheavals of the time. This lecture examines this particular form of musical “organic structure” and demonstrates how Webern develops a structure from atomic sonic gestures that spans from microscopic detail to an overarching form. Henry Pousseur’s later analysis of “organic chromaticism” in Webern’s Bagatelles for string quartet offers an insightful point of reference that can also be fruitfully applied to the orchestral pieces, Op. 10. This event complements the “kleinzeug” seminar, which is dedicated to the tradition of musical miniatures. While that seminar focuses on the expressive condensation of small forms, Webern’s Op. 10 exemplifies just how radically this idea can be taken: as music that experiments with new modes of expression emerging from the sound atom itself, thereby establishing a style that points far beyond its own time.