Berg, Alban, << behrg, ahl BAHN >> (1885-1935), was an Austrian composer. At the age of 19, he became a student of composer Arnold Schoenberg and remained close to him for the rest of his life. He generally followed his teacher in the use of atonality and the 12-tone system (see Music (Tone)). One of Berg’s earliest works to use atonality was his String Quartet of 1910. His first major work using the 12-tone system, also for string quartet, was the Lyric Suite (1927). Berg’s later 12-tone works included his Violin Concerto (1936) and his second opera, Lulu, first performed in its entirety in 1979.
Despite labels such as atonal and 12-tone, Berg’s style remained flexible. In general, his music is more easily appreciated by the average listener than Schoenberg’s. Berg’s works are rich in symbolism. He often chose pitches whose letters spelled out or suggested certain names or initials. Berg was also obsessed with numbers. In the Lyric Suite, the metronome markings and measure totals for each movement are multiples of either 23 or 10, numbers he assigned respectively to himself and to the woman to whom he secretly dedicated the work.
Berg was born in Vienna on Feb. 9, 1885. He was composing songs by the age of 15 and gained fame in 1925 with the premiere of his first opera, Wozzeck. He died on Dec. 24, 1935.
