Online exhibition in 50 objects
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, op. 42
Arnold Schönberg
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, op. 42
Sketch. 1942
Oscar Levant, a former student of Schönberg, was one of the most well-known pianists in the United States: he appeared regularly on radio shows, he composed for film and Broadway, and performed in major concert halls. For him, Schönberg conceived his Concerto for piano, op. 42. The American composer David Diamond was overwhelmed at an early rehearsal for the piece: “Oscar, it’s beautiful […] It’s not … that dry Schoenberg. […] it’s gonna be a beauty because it opens this way.“ The beginning of the piece, in a restrained 3/8 meter, is represented by the pitch series of the underlying row, the beginning of which echoes the key of B♭ major. Levant had interpreted the opening melody in the style of a Viennese waltz. Perhaps he sensed that the composer was dealing with his exile situation with the piece, as programmatic references on further sketches prove. The premiere was finally given by Schönberg’s Viennese student Eduard Steuermann, who had also emigrated to the USA in 1936.
Johann Sebastian Bach: The Well-Tempered Clavier Book 1
Object 1
Theory of Harmony
Object 2
Chamber Symphony, op. 9
Object 3
String Quartet No. 2, op. 10/iv. Rapture
Object 4
Der Blaue Reiter. Almanac
Object 5
Pierrot lunaire, op. 21
Object 6
Arnold Schönberg in military uniform
Object 7
Symphony
Object 8
Jacob’s Ladder
Object 9
Five Piano Pieces, op. 23/i
Object 10
Serenade, op. 24/iii. Variations
Object 11
Autograph Card with Quote from Gurre-Lieder
Object 12
Suite for Piano, op. 25/i. Prelude
Object 13
Suite for Piano, op. 25/iv. Intermezzo
Object 14
Letter to Alma Mahler
Object 15
Self-Portrait
Object 16
On the Essence of Music
Object 17
Sketch for Serenade, op. 24/v. Dance Scene
Object 18
Ruler
Object 19
Claude Debussy: Sonate pour Violoncelle et Piano
Object 20
Suite for Piano, op. 25/iii. Musette
Object 21
Analysis (in the form of Program notes) of the four String Quartets
Object 22
Twelve-tone selection dial
Object 23
Letter to Arnold Schönberg
Object 24
Four Pieces for Mixed Chorus, op. 27/iv
Object 25
Presentation of the Idea
Object 26
Suite, op. 29
Object 27
Suite, op. 29
Object 28
Inversions and (superfluous) devices, Twelve tone dice
Object 29
String Quartet No. 3, op. 30
Object 30
Letter to Rudolf Kolisch
Object 31
Accompaniment to a Cinematographic Scene, op. 34
Object 32
From Today till Tomorrow, op. 32
Object 33
Analysis of Variations for Orchestra, op. 31
Object 34
Piano Piece, op. 33a
Object 35
Moses and Aron
Object 36
Enigma of Modern Music
Object 37
Lecture in Princeton
Object 38
String Quartet No. 4, op. 37
Object 39
Variations on a Recitative for Organ, op. 40
Object 40
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, op. 42
Object 41
Ode to Napoleon Buonaparte, op. 41
Object 42
Prelude for Genesis op. 44
Object 43
A Survivor from Warsaw op. 46
Object 44
Doktor Faustus
Object 45
String Trio, op. 45
Object 46
Phantasy for Violin with Piano Accompaniment, op. 47
Object 47
Thrice A Thousand Years, op. 50A
Object 48
Modern Psalm, op. 50C
Object 49
Fragment for Voice, Cello, and Piano
Object 50