Matthew James, DMA student, saxophoneJames Riggs, Major Professor

January 15, 2006

Analysis of Quartett, Op. 22, mvt. I,

for Violin, Clarinet, Tenor Saxophone and Piano by Anton Webern

The five-measure introduction to the first movement of Anton Webern’s Quartett, Op. 22

(1930) contains elements which, projected across the entire movement, provide it with a deep

level of organization. The use of a tone row which emphasizes the tritone, trichordal

segmentation, canon, generating motives, and the integration of rhythm, color and articulation

are all established in the introduction, and play out in remarkable fashion over the span of the

movement.

The importance of the tritone to this movement is immediately apparent when comparing

first and last notes of the tone row in any of its forms, as shown in the tone row matrix, Figure 1.

Within the movement, Webern creates elided row statements in m. 10 (where the G in saxophone

elides I1 and I7), m. 22 (where the C in violin and piano elide RI0-P0 and R0-I0), and m. 32

(where the G - this time in violin - again elides I1 and I7). The elision of rows results in closed

statements that begin and end on the same note. In addition, there are five instances where

adjacent rows share beginning/ending tones. These occur in mm. 5-6, 11-12, 27-28, 33-34, and

37b. In all, fifteen row forms are used. No row is used more than once in each of the major

sections of the movement.

Figure 1Tone Row Matrix for Op. 22

C# A# A C B D# E F F# G# D GE C# C Eb D F# G G# A B F BbF D C# E Eb G G# A Bb C F# BD B A# C# C E F F# G A Eb AbD# C B D C# F F# G G# Bb E AB G# G Bb A C# D Eb E F# C FBb G F# A G# C C# D D# F B EA F# F G# G B C C# D E Bb EbG# F E G F# Bb B C C# D# A DF# Eb D F E G# A Bb B C# G CC A G# B Bb D Eb E F G C# F#G E Eb F# F A Bb B C D G# C#

The F#-C tritone is also used in this movement to create structure through invariance.

Webern bases the entire two-voice canon (discussed below) on paired rows that share the F# and

C under inversion. Figure 2 shows that, in six of the paired rows, F# and C represent the fourth

and ninth notes of the row, creating a palindromic sense of unisons. In the eight remaining row

forms, F# and C occupy other positions in the paired rows.

Figure 2Invariance Under Inversion Between All Rows Used by Canonic Voices

P1 C# A# A C B D# E F F# G# D GI11 B D Eb C C# A G# G F# E Bb F

I5 F G# A F#` G Eb D C# C Bb E BP7 G E Eb F# F A Bb B C D G# C#

R1 G D G# F# F E Eb B C A A# C#RI11 F Bb E F# G G# A C# C Eb D B

RI0 F# B F G G# A Bb D C# E Eb CR0 F# C# G F E Eb D Bb B G# A C

P0 C A G# B Bb D Eb E F G C# F#I0 C Eb E C# D Bb A G# G F B F#

P10 Bb G F# A G# C C# D D# F B EI2 D F F# Eb E C B Bb A G C# G#

I1 C# E F D D# B Bb A G# F# C GP11 B G# G Bb A C# D Eb E F# C F

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The introduction foreshadows the significance that the invariant tones will have in the

movement. In m. 4, both P1 and I11 converge to share the clarinet’s F#, interrupting the pattern

of imitation between the two voices (see Example 1). This is one of only three instances in the

movement where voices converge upon a unison. In the second instance after the introduction,

the two canonic rows converge on the C in violin, m. 10. Finally, at the climax of the movement

in m. 22, the C in violin represents an elision between RI0 and P0, and the C in the right hand of

the piano represents an elision between R0 and I0. The C’s in m. 22 represent the highest and

lowest notes of the movement, lending additional impact to that climactic measure.

Example 1Convergence Upon F# in Introduction, m. 4

Even when rows do not converge in unison upon F# or C, Webern places these notes in

close proximity to their invariant counterparts. The notes are found in different voices, but are

often in the same octave, often separated by a sixteenth note, but never separated by more than

an eighth note. One finds adjacent F#’s or adjacent C’s in mm. 3, 7, 17, 22, 25, 29, 32-33, 35,

36, 38 and 39.

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Also important is the setting of the F#-C tritone in succession as a motive. Both F# and

C are adjacent tones in rows I1 and I7, and each time they are used (mm. 10, 13, 21, 32, and 35-

36), Webern sets the tritone off as a rhythmically exposed motive. Webern’s use of these five

tritone motives is palindromic: in all but m. 21 the tritone uses rhythmic motive a’ (see Example

5). Additionally, in all but m. 21 he presents the tritone motive in the third, non-canonic voice of

the ensemble (described below). None of these tritone motives are heard in the piano. Example

2 shows the tritone as it appears in m. 32.

Example 2Tritone Motive in m. 32

As established in the introduction, a prime form of the series is always heard with an

inverted form, resulting in an index number that is always 0. As a result, there are only seven

different pitch-class dyads between canonic rows in the movement, as shown in Figure 3. These

dyads result in only four different interval classes (0, 2, 4 and 6). However, since the two

canonic rows are always slightly rhythmically displaced (except for the unisons in mm. 4 and

10), these dyads are not heard as simultaneities. Rather, dyads based on odd-numbered interval

classes are heard simultaneously.

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Figure 3Seven Different Pitch-class Dyads Between Canonic Rows

1 2 3 4 5 6 7B E F D Eb F# C

C# G# G Bb A F# CInterval Class 2 4 2 4 6 0 0

The introduction is based upon trichordal segmentation of the row. Figure 4 shows the

substructure of the row, consisting of adjacent trichords belonging to three different set classes.

Figure 5 shows the instruments assigned to each trichord of the introduction. Example 3 shows

the trichordal organization of the introduction.

Figure 4Trichordal Analysis of Op.22 Tone Row P1

Figure 5Trichordal Instrumentation of Introduction

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Example 3Trichordal Organization of the Introduction

With only a few exceptions throughout the movement, Webern maintains the technique

of assigning each dyad and trichord to a different voice, as established in the introduction.

However, the order of voice entries from the introduction is not followed in the rest of the

movement. One exception is found in mm. 6-15, where the non-canonic voice (discussed below)

gives full statements of I1 and I7, and is found entirely in the saxophone. Another exception is

m. 28, where individual tones of I5 and P7 momentarily cross between the left and right hands of

the piano.

While the introduction uses trichordal segmentation, both dyadic and trichordal motives

are employed throughout the movement. The canonic voices feature dyadic organization in mm.

6-11, and 28-33, which represent the first measures of each A section.

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A study of the hexachordal qualities of the row, illustrated in Figure 6, reveals two self-

complementary hexachords. Additionally, Figure 7 illustrates that the hexachords are

combinatorial under inversion.

Figure 6Hexachordal Analysis of Tone Row P1

Figure 7Cominatoriality Between P1 and I4

The introduction immediately reveals Webern’s preference for scoring disjunct leaps of

at least a major 7th or minor 9th, rather than using conjunct minor seconds. Examples can be

found in both the tenor saxophone and violin, whose initial motives in the introduction include

leaps of a minor 9th. These disjunct motives serve a unifying role in the movement, and are

found throughout. While an analysis of the row for Op. 22 reveals Webern’s preference for

interval class 1 between adjacent tones (see Figure 8), the minor second interval is used only

four times in the movement (mm. 4, 10, 25 and 38).

Figure 8Interval Class Analysis of Op.22 Tone Row P1

Row P1: C# A# A C B D# E F F# G# D GIC: 3 1 3 1 4 1 1 1 2 6 5

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The overall form is a large-scale palindrome, with an ABA form flanked by an

introduction and coda. While the existence of two large repeated sections initially suggests

binary form, the presence of a fermata at m. 28, the contrasting dynamics and rhythmic nature of

mm. 16-27, and the landscape of the tone rows lead to this conclusion. Figure 9 indicates the

form of mvt. I.

Figure 9Form of Op. 22/i

Section Introduction A B A Coda

Measures 1-5 6-15 16-27 28-37b 38-41

Rows P1, I11 I1, P7, I5, I7, P1, I11P10, I2, I1, P11, RI0, R0, P0, I0, R1,

RI11 I1, I5, P7, I7, P1, I11 RI11, R1

The introduction establishes two rows, P1 and I11, that are employed in the coda in

retrograde, creating a mirror image of the notes of the introduction. Also, P1 and I11 take on the

structural role of closing out the A sections of the movement. This is done in similar fashion

each time in mm. 5 (close of introduction), 15 and 37b (close of A sections), with fp closing

trichordal motives based on rhythmic motive b (see Example 5). These closing motives are

always on pitches 10, 11 and 12 of P1 and I11, although found in a different octave each time.

The tone rows and rhythm used in the two A sections are identical, except for

instrumentation and contour. The first A section features the tenor saxophone as the third, non-

canonic voice (discussed below), surrounded by the canon. In the second A section, the third,

non-canonic voice appears in violin, clarinet and saxophone entirely above the canon, found here

in the piano. Each note of the second A section moves in opposite contour when compared to its

counterpart in the first A section.

The B section includes a palindrome around the climax of the movement, m. 22.

Example 3 shows the palindrome, which features an escalation in the number of instruments,

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rhythmic activity, and dynamics. Rows RI0/R0 and I0/P0 move outward in both directions from

m. 22. The C’s in the violin (highest note of the movement) and piano (lowest note of the

movement) serve as the axis of this palindrome, with the outer ends at mm. 21-24. These

fortissimo C’s represent the loudest dynamic in the movement. Rhythm is integrated into the

palindrome as well: a consistent stream of eight sixteenth-notes moves out from the axis,

culminating in slurred motives in the piano, saxophone and clarinet.

Example 3Use of Palindrome in B Section, mm. 21-24

The two-voice canon established in the introduction continues to the end of the

movement. The two inverted lines are offset and use duplicate rhythms, but the rests between

imitative entrances are not always identical. The rhythmic separation between dux and comes is

usually a sixteenth-note, but alternates and can be as long as two eighth-notes. As a result, when

taking this rhythmic inconsistency into consideration, this is not a strict canon.

As set forth in the introduction, the canon’s roles of dux and comes alternate, but no

consistent pattern plays out in the movement. Figure 10 shows the palindromic pattern

established in the introduction, however this pattern is not found elsewhere. After being shared

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by clarinet, violin and piano in the first A section, the canon is found only in the piano for the

second A section. The climactic B section involves each voice in presenting the canon.

Figure 10Palindromic Pattern of Canonic Entrances in Introduction

Measure m. 1-2 m. 3 m. 3-4 m. 5Dux P1 I11 I11 P1

Comes I11 P1 P1 I11

In each A section, a third voice is added which does not participate in the canon. This

third, non-canonic voice first appears in the rhythmically contrasting saxophone part, which

clearly presents I1 and I7 from mm. 6-15. This is shown in Example 4. The scoring for

saxophone is unique, in that its greater rhythmic activity separates the color of the instrument

from its surroundings. The non-canonic voice returns in mm. 28-37a, but is this time shared by

the violin, clarinet and saxophone, again performing I1 and I7, and duplicating the rhythm of

mm. 6-15. The B section does not feature the third, non-canonic voice, providing further

justification for mm. 16-27 as a separate section.

Example 4Third, Non-Canonic Voice in Saxophone, mm. 6-15

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The appearances of the third, non-canonic voice in the A sections are dissimilar in

another regard. While the non-canonic voice in each instance uses identical rows, the motion of

each canonic voice is inverted when compared to its counterpart. The only exceptions are the

final notes of I1 in m. 32, and the final notes of I7 in mm. 35-36, which duplicate the direction of

their counterparts in the first A section.

The third, non-canonic voice is also rhythmically unique. Vertically separated from the

canonic voices, it is given rhythmic independence in the style of a hocket. As stated earlier,

Webern sets the tritone off as a rhythmically exposed motive. The F# of that interval always

occurs on the downbeat of a measure (mm. 10, 14, 32 and 36a/b).

The introduction sets forth four distinct generating motives that supply motivic material

for all voices throughout the movement. These are labeled as motives a, b, c and c’ in Example

5. These motives are not consistently paired with dynamic markings, articulation, pitch, or

instrumentation. (One exception is that the piano part does not use motive a anywhere in the

movement.)

The canon uses no more than three of these short motives in any one statement of a tone

row. In m. 6, the third, non-canonic voice begins with a portion of motive a, but adds two new

rhythms, a’ and c’’, closely related to motives a and c from the introduction. Motive a’ reverses

the order of the eighth and sixteenth from motive a, and augments the final eighth note into a

quarter note. Motive c’’ repeats the rhythm of the dyad found in motive c.

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Example 5Generating Motives from Introduction and

Related Motives from Third Non-Canonic Voice

The B section is the most rhythmically active, with all four instruments used in close

proximity around mm. 22-23, based on motives a, c and c’. This rhythmic energy is integrated

with palindrome, dynamics, and extreme range to make m. 22 a unique, climactic moment in the

movement. The combination of all the instruments creates a new color which contrasts with the

sparse, economic instrumentation found elsewhere in the movement.

While Webern does not consistently tie instrumentation to the use of the row in a serial

manner, he does integrate the use of instrumentation into the form of the movement. In the

similar introduction and coda, each instrument is heard separately, playing minimal material with

only periodic overlapping. As discussed earlier, the first A section features an active saxophone

part as the non-canonic voice, surrounded by the canon. This is the only instance where an

instrument is featured in such a way, and supplies this section with a color not repeated

elsewhere in the movement. The second A section shares the same material, however each non-

canonic motive is spread among violin, clarinet and saxophone, with the canon placed solely in

the piano.

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The introduction also serves to introduce each instrument of the ensemble. All four

instruments are capable of a wide spectrum of tone colors and dynamics. In particular, the violin

part includes consistent alternation between pizzicato and arco throughout the movement, along

with the use of a mute. Additionally, the saxophone and clarinet are capable of a wide dynamic

range. Finally, Webern’s treatment of the piano is unique: successive entrances of the left and

right hands almost always present notes from different tone rows, treating each hand separately,

rather than as a single unit. Across the movement, the relationship between the left and right

hands is rhythmically close, with entrances of the two hands usually no more than an eighth-note

apart.

As early as the first two measures, one hears the ability of the wind instruments to blend

with other members of the ensemble. Despite the potential for great contrast, this blending lends

a homogeneous sound to the work. Webern elides instrumental colors by rhythmically

connecting one instrument’s motives with notes that are very close in register to another

instrument. While the vertical combination of voices may somewhat obscure aural identification

of the trichordal organization, the overlapping of voices combines contrasting timbres of the

ensemble to generate a linear rhythmic momentum. In mm. 1-2, for example, the saxophone

completes its motive only a whole-step under the beginning of the violin’s figure, thereby

creating a rhythmic and coloristic connection between the first two trichords of the movement.

This is shown in Example 6. A few additional examples of this effect include mm. 9, 13, 16,

and 17.

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Example 6Elision of Saxophone and Violin Colors, mm. 1-2

The major 7th and minor 9th intervals, first heard in the introduction but found throughout,

create rapid changes of timbre within single voices. These timbre changes are periodically

emphasized by the fp dynamic, creating further contrast in the span of only two to three notes.

Both rhythm and instrumental color are further integrated through the use of hocket. The

use of hocket technique to link voices results in longer, connected passages. Measures 6-8, 20-

21, 22-23, 29-30 and 35-36 all feature displaced rests which serve to link the music together for

measures at a time. Also, as noted earlier, the non-canonic voice in each A section creates a

hocket with the canon.

Another compositional element established in the introduction is the sharing of identical

dynamic markings between each paired dyad or trichord between the two canonic voices. This

consistent sharing of dynamic markings continues throughout the movement, with the exception

of m. 16. The matched dynamics serve to intertwine voices and further the linear momentum

and elision of instrumental colors discussed earlier.

The five different dynamic markings, including pp, p, f, ff and fp, are not consistently tied

to statements of the row. Nor are they consistently tied to articulation or rhythmic motives.

However, Webern does match dynamic markings to the large-scale palindromic form. The

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introduction and first A section use only p, pp and fp, as do the final A section and coda. The

climactic B section adds f and ff to build intensity.

As introduced in the introduction, every note of the movement is written with a precise

articulation marking. Webern employs legato, staccato, accents and pizzicato markings to

increase the variety of instrumental colors already at his disposal. But articulation is not

consistently paired with pitch, dynamics, or rhythmic motives. To illustrate, Example 7 shows

the various articulation styles assigned to motive b.

Example 7Articulation Markings Assigned to Motive b in mm. 3, 17 and 20

Articulation plays a role in conjoining the canonic voices in the introduction and

throughout the movement. Their articulation markings are identical, except for m. 21, 25-27, 39,

and 40-41. Also, each presentation of the non-canonic voice uses identical articulation, despite

the change in instrumentation. Finally, when comparing the A sections, the second A section

begins by duplicating the articulation of the first A section, but soon (by m. 31) ceases that

duplication.

In summary, numerous compositional elements are set forth in the introduction to mvt. I

of Webern’s Op. 22 which give the movement a high degree of organization and cohesion.

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Canon, emphasis on the F#-C tritone and invariant tones, hocket, palindrome, dyadic and

trichordal segmentation and elision of instrumental colors were some of the techniques

uncovered in this movement. The identification of these elements provides fascinating insight

into the intricate inner workings of Webern’s compositional technique, and gives further impetus

to explore additional works by this 20th-century composer.

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