Rochberg, who began as an atonal composer, has reincorporated tonality into his style as a reaction against the limitation of expression in atonal music. His Third String Quartet juxtaposes sections of atonal music with sections that strongly suggest the styles of Beethoven and Mahler, without using direct quotation. For example, the quartet's finale resembles the finale of Mahler's Ninth Symphony in hamony, mood, use of pedal point, and melodic figures to the point where one can see the two passages as belonging to the same piece. Motivic unification is used to unite historical with modern styles. Rochberg uses the styles of Beethoven and Mahler because of their expressive connotations and incorporates them into a new context. This way of using the music of the past is not reactionary, but progressive.

Index Classifications: 1900s

Contributed by: Jessica Sternfeld, Sergio Bezerra