100 years of atonality

After the centenary celebrations for Messiaen and Elliot Carter, another centenary has passed unremarked: that of the first performance of Schoenberg’s second string quartet, which fell today. Surely a notable date in musical history, and worth commemorating unless you reject all atonal music on principle. We don’t have a recording of the quartet, but listened to some other early atonal pieces instead. At least it makes a change from Christmas carols.