Editor’s Message

[1] The current issue of MTO has been delayed somewhat by the recent downtime of Boethius, the SMT web server.  We are pleased now to offer two rather different articles.  Murray Dineen explores a relatively little known early 19th-century figured-bass treatise, the Wiener-Tonschule by Joseph Preindl.  Dineen explores the issue of how the treatise addresses modulation, a musical feature that depends on an understanding of harmonic root movement and is not inherent in the mechanical realization of figured basses.  Ciro Scotto examines the use of both symmetric and asymmetric pitch structures in George Crumb's Processional, a 1983 work for solo piano.  A number of techniques deriving from aggregate partitions, transpositional combination, and transformational networks are examined.  In both articles, musical figures are rendered in the high-resolution DjVu format.

[2] Also in this issue is a review by Guy Capuzzo of Robert Morris’ Class Notes for Advanced Atonal Music Theory (Lebanon, N.H.: Frog Peak Music, 2001)  The issue is rounded out with listings of recently completed dissertations, job opportunities, new books, and general announcements.

[3] Reactions to Dineen’s or Scotto’s articles or Capuzzo’s review can be shared in two ways. The mto-talk email list is available to MTO subscribers (subscription is free) for online discussion of any MTO-related topic. (This link will help you determine if you are a subscriber.) To post to mto-talk, simply send an email message to mto-talk@societymusictheory.org. Longer responses may be submitted for publication in the Commentary section of the next issue. These should be formatted and submitted according to MTO’s Author Guidelines.

Eric J. Isaacson, General Editor
Music Theory Online
School of Music
Indiana University
Bloomington, IN 47405
U.S.A.

mto-editor@societymusictheory.org
voice: (812) 855-0296 (with voice mail)
fax: (812) 855-4936

Updated 03 July 2013
Brent Yorgason