Schoenberg’s Cinematographic Blueprint: A Programmatic Analysis of Begleitungsmusik zu einer Lichtspielscene (1929–1930)
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Abstract
This paper examines Schoenberg’s approach to film-music composition through his only published music for film, Begleitungsmusik zu einer Lichtspielscene [Accompaniment to a Film Scene], op. 34 (1929–1930). In order to explore Schoenberg’s approach, the present study synthesizes Begleitungsmusik’s programmatic and cinematic aspirations by examining the work as Schoenberg’s blueprint for a film scene: a design (or program) for a scene, that at the same time serves as its soundtrack. To test this hypothesis, I collaborated with the artist Stephen Sewell to create a film scene based on my analysis of Begleitungsmusik. While expressing analysis through film proves remarkably appropriate to this composition, in fact, analytical visualization can contribute to various interpretive approaches, allowing listeners to connect an analytical reading in real time to their experience.
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