“Performances of Arnold Schoenberg’s music aren’t so common these days, particularly when it comes to his dauntingly grand vocal-orchestral works like Gurrelieder or Erwartung,” reads an unsigned post on Saturday (3/21) at New York radio station WQXR’s website. “But earlier this month, the University of Southern California—where Schoenberg once taught—devised a novel effort to disseminate his 12-tone music to the masses, by playing part of it on loudspeakers mounted on small delivery trucks that roam the school’s campus. The project was conceived by art professor David Schafer, who said in a statement, ‘It’s like a historical recovery project, with Schoenberg’s ‘voice’ and dissonant material being deployed by utility carts.’ The ‘Schoenberg Soundways project’ trucks featured not only the aforementioned Gurrelieder and Erwartung but also the composer’s Wind Quintet, Brettl-Lieder and Violin Fantasy.” The post includes video of the Schoenberg Soundways truck.
Posted March 23, 2015
