Much has been written about Luigi Dallapiccola’s acquisition of the twelvetone method. The composer, in his writings, frequently lamented the fact that he had had no direct study with any of the “masters,” and that his knowledge of the twelve-tone technique came only through “long and careful” study of the music of Webern and Schoenberg.¹ Some musicologists, such as Christopher Wilkinson, deny the influence of Webern altogether; others, like Giordano Montecchi, argue that Dallapiccola was predisposed to formal rigor and intricate counterpoint long before he embraced the twelve-tone system, and that he came independently to Webernian features.² Michael Eckert asserts...

This chapter reviews and documents the appropriation of Webernian and Schoenbergian procedures in Dallapiccola’s second serial phase. I asserted in the previous chapter that this phase is demarcated by the second and thirdtonal translations, Tartiniana(1951) andTartiana seconda(1956). Its works include theQuaderno musicale di Annalibera,for piano, and its orchestral arrangement, theVariations for Orchestra; Canti di liberazione,for chorus and orchestra;Goethe-Lieder,for mezzo-soprano and clarinet trio;Piccola musica notturna,for orchestra; andAn Mathilde,a cantata for soprano and orchestra.¹ With the exception ofAn Mathilde,these works are well known to scholars and...

The compositions of phase 3 could hardly contrast more with those of the previous period. As a whole, these works are not well known, though they arguably represent the most fertile period in Dallapiccola’s development.¹ In general, they are more complex formally, more intricate rhythmically, and more expansive in size and scope. They are also more rigorous, more dramatic in terms of expression, and more variegated in their confi gurations and textures. Most important, they demonstrate a complete absorption of Webernian techniques, an increased reliance on Schoenbergian techniques, and several rhythmic and timbral innovations that have no precedents in the...

I have argued in the previous chapters that the starting and ending points for the first three phases are delineated bytonal translations,and that each phase begins with a flurry of compositional activity and exploration. I have also asserted that the works of each phase are relatively homogenous with respect to their procedures, formal attributes, organizational principles, and soundscapes. But some factors make it difficult to pinpoint a starting date for the fourth phase, afterDialoghi.One is that there is no fourthtonal translation;another is the fact that the compositions of this period are less homogenous than...

Octatonic collections appear in the works of many twentieth-century composers. Even a partial list of composers who use octatonic collections would include Samuel Barber, Bela Bartók, Ernest Bloch, Benjamin Britten, George Crumb, Claude Debussy, Irving Fine, Ross Lee Finney, Alberto Ginastera, John Harbison, Aram Khatchaturian, Witold Lutoslawski, Olivier Messiaen, Darius Milhaud, Robert Morris, Jean Papineau-Couture, Krzysztof Penderecki, Francis Poulenc, Sergei Prokofiev, Maurice Ravel, Alexander Scriabin, Dmitri Shostakovich, Igor Stravinsky, Toru Takemitsu, and Joan Tower, among others.¹ That little has been written about octatonicism in serial music should hardly come as a surprise, since the eight-note collection would appear to be...

An Mathildeis the last composition of Dallapiccola’s second serial phase, and one of his few works for large orchestra. It is scored for strings (4.4.4.4.2), eight winds (flute, two oboes, three clarinets, bassoon, saxophone), four brass (two horns, trumpet, trombone), and an assortment of un-pitched and pitched percussion, including celesta, harp, glockenspiel, xylophone, and vibraphone.¹ It shares many structural characteristics with theGoethe-Lieder(which were completed several years earlier), including canon, axial symmetry, and trichordal derivation. But there are significant differences between these works. The seven songs of theGoethe-Liederare based on aphoristic and whimsical texts, whereasAn...

This chapter offers a reading ofParole di San Paolo,a fourth-phase work that, likeAn Mathilde,has been virtually ignored by scholars. The analysis examines this work in particular and the fourth phase in general. It models the twelve-tone techniques and strategies, the small-scale and large-scale form, and the pitchclass and set-class associations on the surface. Particular emphasis is placed on showing how changes in partitioning strategies articulate changes in the form.

Paroleis written for medium voice and an instrumental ensemble that includes two pairs of woodwinds (flute/alto flute, and clarinet/bass clarinet), pitched percussion (celesta, piano, harp, vibraphone),...