Even with the passing of years since his death in 1951, Arnold Schoenberg continues to be one of the most controversial as well as most influential composer in the 20th century. He pioneered the use of atonal (a descriptive term he despised) composition affecting not only his peers like Stravinsky, Webern and Berg but also paving the way for avant-garde innovators such as Boulez, Cage, and Stockhausen. Indeed, it would be hard to imagine modern classical and post-modern music without Schoenberg.

Schoenberg’s music can be quite demanding to the listener. My favorite works are Pierrot Lunaire which is a 20th century masterpiece and almost cabaret in parts, and the emotional but very difficult opera, Moses and Aron. The beginning listener might do well to start with Piano Piece. Op.11 a very early work from 1909 that straddles Schoenberg’s late Romanticism with his move into the atonal. His very controversial 12-tone technique of composing was to come much later. Piano Piece is actually three compositions of a brooding nature with the last piece being the one that mostly plays with the atonal. This excellent performance is from The Piano Society and features the young pianist Hector Sanchez. The file format is 224kbps MP3.

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