Second Viennese School

The Second Viennese School refers to a group of early 20th-century Austrian composers—primarily Arnold Schoenberg, along with Alban Berg and Anton Webern—who revolutionized classical music by developing atonal and twelve-tone techniques. Moving away from traditional tonal harmony, their music emphasizes structure and expression through dissonance and complex innovation. This movement marked a major shift in modern music, emphasizing individual creativity and new ways of organizing sound, influencing the course of 20th-century composition.