Arnold Schoenberg

Full biography Arnold Schoenberg

Arnold Schoenberg was an Austrian composer, painter, and music theorist, born on September 13, 1874, in Vienna. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential and revolutionary figures in 20th-century classical music.

Schoenberg, along with fellow composers Alban Berg and Anton Webern, was a member of the Second Viennese School, which sought to develop and advance the principles of atonality, which was aimed at creating a more radical style of music, in which the traditional rules of harmony and tonality were abandoned.

Early in his career, Schoenberg was a highly skilled composer of late-Romantic music, and his works from this period display his mastery of the traditional musical forms. But later in his life, his music became more dissonant, chromatic and included unconventional techniques such as the 12-tone method.

Schoenberg was also a respected teacher and produced some of the most notable figures of 20th-century classical music, including Alban Berg and Anton Webern. His work had a profound impact on the development and evolution of music, with many of his techniques, such as the 12-tone method, being utilized by composers for years to come.

Despite facing significant criticism for his pioneering musical style, Schoenberg never lost his passion for musical innovation. Today, his music continues to be studied, performed, and celebrated by classical music enthusiasts all over the world. Schoenberg died on July 13, 1951, in Los Angeles, California, where he lived his final years as a teacher and lecturer.