Berg’s Musical Apprenticeship, 1899–1911

In Chapter 2 Berg’s early musical activities are outlined, and his musical studies with Arnold Schoenberg are examined in detail. His first efforts as a composer were songs, some thirty-three of these composed before he had formal training in music. His studies with Schoenberg began in 1904, beginning with exercises in counterpoint and fugue, then progressing to composition per se. In these disciplines Schoenberg emphasized a mastery of traditional musical forms and materials. The emphasis on time-honored forms had a lasting impact on Berg’s later music, and Schoenberg’s philosophy concerning musical evolution reinforced Berg’s own musical instincts. Berg’s early compositions—songs, piano works, and his Opp. 1–3—are discussed and described to show their relation to contemporary musical developments and Berg’s impulse toward originality. Whenever possible Berg’s own descriptions and analyses of his early music are cited, and Berg’s approach to “atonal” harmony is described.