Volume : 11, Issue : 7, JUL 2025

ARNOLD SCHOENBERG’S ARTISTIC DEVELOPMENT AND THE QUEST FOR EXPRESSION IN MODERN MUSIC

ÖZLEM ONUK NATONSKI

Abstract

This article aims to examine the interdisciplinary dimension of Expressionism through the music of Arnold Schoenberg. Shaped by the social crises of the early 20th century, Expressionist aesthetics is approached as a form of artistic expression that conveys the individual's inner world, subconscious, and existential anxieties. Schoenberg’s atonal and twelve-tone musical language, developed through a departure from tonality, is considered a concrete outcome of the quest to reflect this psychological depth.

The study presents an interdisciplinary analysis prepared using qualitative methods, examining both musical and visual productions in line with literature from musicology, art history, and aesthetics. Emphasizing the role of Expressionism in articulating the vulnerability of the modern individual, this article holds significance in illuminating the psychological and cultural functions of art.

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