''Die Jakobsleiter'' (''

Jacob's Ladder Jacob's Ladder ( he, סֻלָּם יַעֲקֹב ) is a ladder leading to heaven that was featured in a dream the biblical Patriarch Jacob had during his flight from his brother Esau in the Book of Genesis (chapter 28). The significance of th ...

'') is an

oratorio An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...

Arnold Schoenberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (, ; ; 13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian-American composer, music theorist, teacher, writer, and painter. He is widely considered one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. He was as ...

that marks his transition from a contextual or free

atonality Atonality in its broadest sense is music that lacks a tonal center, or key. ''Atonality'', in this sense, usually describes compositions written from about the early 20th-century to the present day, where a hierarchy of harmonies focusing on a s ...

to the

twelve-tone technique The twelve-tone technique—also known as dodecaphony, twelve-tone serialism, and (in British usage) twelve-note composition—is a method of musical composition first devised by Austrian composer Josef Matthias Hauer, who published his "law o ...

anticipated in the oratorio's use of

hexachord In music, a hexachord (also hexachordon) is a six-note series, as exhibited in a scale (hexatonic or hexad) or tone row. The term was adopted in this sense during the Middle Ages and adapted in the 20th century in Milton Babbitt's serial theor ...

s. Though ultimately unfinished by Schoenberg, the piece was completed and prepared for performance by Schoenberg student

Winfried Zillig Winfried Zillig (1 April 1905 – 18 December 1963) was a German composer, music theorist, and conductor. Zillig was born in Würzburg. After leaving school, Zillig studied law and music. One of his teachers there was Hermann Zilcher. In Vienna h ...

at the request of Gertrude Schoenberg. Schoenberg began the

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

in 1914-15, which he published as a stand-alone text in 1917. He began the music in 1915, finishing most of his work on it in 1926, and finished a small amount of orchestration in 1944, leaving 700 measures at his death. The piece is also notable for its use of

developing variation In musical composition, developing variation is a formal technique in which the concepts of development and variation are united in that variations are produced through the development of existing material. The term was coined by Arnold Schoenbe ...

. The fragment received a partial premiere - 160 bars - in 1958, and was premiered as far as possible in Vienna on June 16, 1961, conducted by

Rafael Kubelik Rafael may refer to: * Rafael (given name) or Raphael, a name of Hebrew origin * Rafael, California * Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, Israeli manufacturer of weapons and military technology * Hurricane Rafael, a 2012 hurricane Fiction * Rafa ...

. All performances before 1968 were concert performances; the American premiere took place in 1968 at the

Santa Fe Opera Santa Fe Opera (SFO) is an American opera company, located north of Santa Fe, New Mexico. After creating the ''Opera Association of New Mexico'' in 1956, its founding director, John Crosby (conductor), John Crosby, oversaw the building of the fir ...

using a staging by director

Bodo Igesz Bodo Igesz (February 7, 1935 in Amsterdam – December 25, 2014 in New York City) was a Dutch stage director who had an active career staging operas around the world during the second half of the 20th century. He was particularly known for his work ...

. It was repeated in 1980. In 1968 a "scenic performance" - the oratorio version of what for opera would be a staged performance - was given. The score was first published in 1974 by the composer's publisher Belmont. Notable recordings include one for Columbia records with

Robert Craft Robert Lawson Craft (October 20, 1923 – November 10, 2015) was an American conductor and writer. He is best known for his intimate professional relationship with Igor Stravinsky, on which Craft drew in producing numerous recordings and books. ...

conducting, and one for CBS conducted by

Pierre Boulez Pierre Louis Joseph Boulez (; 26 March 1925 – 5 January 2016) was a French composer, conductor and writer, and the founder of several musical institutions. He was one of the dominant figures of post-war Western classical music. Born in Mont ...

, featuring

Siegmund Nimsgern Siegmund Nimsgern (born 14 January 1940) is a German bass-baritone, born in Sankt Wendel, Saarland, Germany. After leaving school in 1960 he studied singing and musical education at the Hochschule für Musik Saar with Sibylle Fuchs, Jakob St� ...

as Gabriel, and with

Ian Partridge Ian Partridge (born 12 June 1938) is a retired English lyric tenor, whose repertoire ranged from Monteverdi, Bach and Handel, the Elizabethan lute songs, German, French and English songs, through to Schoenberg, Weill and Britten, and on to cont ...

Anthony Rolfe Johnson Anthony Rolfe Johnson (5 November 1940 – 21 July 2010) was an English operatic tenor. Early life Anthony Rolfe Johnson was born in Tackley in Oxfordshire. As a boy, he demonstrated musical ability and sang as a boy soprano, making a record ...

and

Mady Mesplé Mady Mesplé (7 March 1931 – 30 May 2020) was a French opera singer, considered the leading coloratura soprano of her generation in France, and sometimes heralded as the successor to Mado Robin, with ''Lakmé'' by Delibes becoming her signatur ...

in other singing roles, released in 1982.

References

External links

Time.com: Schoenberg Revisited

Viewing

YouTube.com: World premiere of Arnold Schoenberg's (1874-1951) oratorio "Die Jakobsleiter" in Vienna, 1961 part I
an
part II: discussion
Atonal compositions by Arnold Schoenberg Musical compositions completed by others Oratorios {{classical-composition-stub