Publication details
Beyond the Bounds of Reason: Notes on Jan Klusák’s Concept of Invention
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2026 |
| Type | Peer-reviewed scientific article |
| Magazine / Source | Hudební věda |
| Citation | |
| Keywords | Jan Klusák; invention; serialism; rationality; musicality; quadratura circuli |
| Description | The subject of this study is a reflection on the development of Jan Klusák's approaches to the form of invention. Focusing on this section of the composer's extensive output, and also taking into account his Variations on a Theme by Gustav Mahler, the present writer probes into these works' essential formative principles and examines the place of Klusák's music in the broader European context. In this respect, he draws parallels with the concepts of the genre of invention evolved by Johann Sebastian Bach, and by Alban Berg (documented on the third act of his opera Wozzeck). Apart from that, he points to a major influence exerted on Klusák by the serial method of Anton Webern. The writer takes due notice of the symbiosis of rationality in Klusák's work, which is manifested by a systematic development of serial (multiserial) technique, combined with creative spontaneity rooted in organic musicality. In reference to the employment of rational tendencies in composition, the author contemplates the principle of incorporation of geometric shapes – the circle and the square – into a musical work. In conclusion, he sums up both Klusák's methods of further developing serial technique (diatonic transformation of the twelve-tone series), and his contribution to the process of innovating the European concept of counterpoint. |