How did Anton Webern use formal discipline in his Symphony and Concerto for 9 Instruments?

Anton Webern applied rigorous formal discipline to his Symphony (1928) and Concerto for 9 Instruments (1934) by utilizing the 12-tone method of composition.

In this system, Webern organized a basic "row" derived from the 12 tones of the chromatic scale. He developed this serial technique with severe consistency, employing the row both melodically and harmonically through specific structural devices, including:

• Inversion: Playing the row upside down.
• Retrograde progression: Playing the row backward.
• Transposition: Shifting the row to different pitch levels.

By applying these devices, Webern allowed for a total of 48 possible appearances of the chosen row, ensuring that his instrumental works were governed by a strict, logical framework rather than traditional tonal centers. This approach reflected his commitment to developing serialism to its extreme potential, a practice that later influenced composers like Karlheinz Stockhausen to expand serial principles to other musical elements such as duration and intensity.12