Atonality

This lesson is part of the Harmony category.

Objectives

• Students will become familiar with the characteristics and techniques of atonality.

Resources

Readings

• Hutchinson, Music Theory for the 21st-Century Classroom:
  • Chapter 34: Serialism

• Shaffer, Wharton (eds.), Open Music Theory:
  • "Analyzing a Post-Tonal Piece from Scratch"
  • "Analyzing Atonal Music"
  • "Twelve-Tone Theory: Basics"
  • "Twelve-Tone Theory: Operations"
• Magnuson, Sound Patterns: Serialism
• Music Theory for Musicians and Normal People: "Atonality and Serialism"
• Kelley, Introduction to Post-Tonal Music Analysis:
  • "The Twelve-Tone Method"
  • "The Matrix"

Class Activities

• Discussion and definition of atonal composition, including Schoenberg’s twelve-tone row process
• Analysis of a twelve-tone row piece
• Composition of a short atonal piece

Assignments

• Twelve-tone row analysis of a written score

Files

• John Paul Ito: Free Atonality Assignments