An Issue between Contemporary Theory and Modern Compositional Practice A Study of Joseph Straus's Laws of Atonal Voice Leading and Harmony using Webern's Opus 12/2 and Crawford's String Quartet Mvt. 3

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Authors

  • Yi-Cheng Daniel Wu Soochow University School of Music

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.33871/23179937.2013.1.2.427

Abstract

In his recent research project, music theorist Joseph Straus extends the traditional notions of smooth voice leading and the quality of harmony in tonal music to describe atonal voice leading and harmony. To achieve this goal, Straus proposes a theory called fuzzy transformations to analyze atonal music. Based on his findings, he further concludes the law of atonal voice leading and that of atonal harmony, which state that compositions, especially those in "more conservative styles," do obey these two laws. To test the validity of Straus's laws, I use Crawford's String Quartet Mvt. 3 and Webern's song op. 12/2 as case studies, examining the potential strengths and inherent weaknesses in Straus's fuzzy transformations, and further pointing out a conflict between music theory and compositional practice.

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Author Biography

Yi-Cheng Daniel Wu, Soochow University School of Music

Yi-Cheng Daniel Wu received his Ph.D. in Music Theory at the University at Buffalo in Summer 2012. His research interests focus on the topics of musical form, harmony, voice leading, and pitch contour in 20th and 21st-century music. Prior to coming to Soochow University School of Music in Fall 2013 as the Assistant Professor of Music Theory, he taught at Wesleyan University (Middletown CT, USA), where he served as the Visiting Assistant Professor of Music. Aside from music theory, he is also interested in piano performance. In the Spring of 2009, he received first prize in the 2008-2009 UBSO Concerto Competition, in which he performed the first movement from Saint-Saëns's Second Piano Concerto

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Published

2013-12-30

How to Cite

Wu, Y.-C. D. (2013). An Issue between Contemporary Theory and Modern Compositional Practice A Study of Joseph Straus’s Laws of Atonal Voice Leading and Harmony using Webern’s Opus 12/2 and Crawford’s String Quartet Mvt. 3. Vortex Music Journal, 1(2), 1–29. https://doi.org/10.33871/23179937.2013.1.2.427

Issue

Vol. 1 No. 2 (2013): Vortex Music Journal

Section

Research Papers

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Copyright (c) 2013 Vortex Music Journal

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