Rethinking Octatonicism

Recent and long-standing debates about the role of octatonicism in works by Stravinsky and other late-chromatic and early-modernist composers have taken place with little mention of how octatonicsim is viewed in Russia—the country of Stravinsky’s birth and formative years as a composer. In this article, the author seeks to put music that is often considered octatonic in North America into a Russian framework. He does this by examining the work of three Russian music theorists: Boleslav Yavorsky, Sergei Protopopov, and Yuri Kholopov. The author seeks not to invalidate American views on octatonicism but, rather, to enrich the current discussion with Russian perspectives.