Dodecaphony

Dodecaphony, also known as twelve-tone technique, is a musical method developed by Arnold Schoenberg in the early 20th century. It involves using all twelve notes of the chromatic scale equally, in a specific order called a tone row, which is then used as the basis for the composition. This approach avoids traditional tonal centers and scales, creating a more abstract and balanced sound. The composer can manipulate this row through various transformations (inversion, retrograde), maintaining equal importance of all notes and fostering unity and coherence without relying on conventional melodies or harmonies.