1982 Articles

Brahms, Developing Variation, and the Schoenberg Critical Tradition

Frisch, Walter M.

Although Arnold Schoenberg discussed developing variation only sporadically in his critical writings, he clearly considered it one of the most important compositional principles of Western music from the common-practice era to his own day. This essay examines Schoenberg's remarks on this compositional principle and includes a discussion of developing variation in relation to the work of Johannes Brahams.