Editing Josef Matthias Hauer (section)

==Theoretical writings==
Hauer is considered an important figure in the development of twelve-tone theory and aesthetics. His early published writings ''Vom Wesen des Musikalischen'' (1920) and ''Deutung des Melos'' articulate the more theoretical and aesthetic aspects of Hauer's thought, while ''Vom Melos zur Pauke'' (1925) and ''Zwölftontechnik, Die Lehre von den Tropen'' (1926) provide detailed musical examples. Because of the discussion of tropes in ''Zwölftontechnik'', Hauer has usually been cast as an advocate for trope composition in contrast to those advocating the use of an ordered twelve-tone series. This view, however, is mistaken; tropes were only one of the many ways Hauer had of approaching a systematic circulation of all twelve tones. (Much of the music praised by those who advocated for an ordered series—the music of Schoenberg and Berg especially—was much more flexible in actual practice than the descriptions of them seems to indicate.) These early theoretical works make Hauer one of the founders of twelve-tone theory.<ref>Covach 2002, {{Page needed|date=March 2013}}.</ref>

In his theoretical writing, Hauer often casts the twelve tempered tones as a kind of spiritual world. For Hauer, this twelve-tone world offers one access to the fundamental truths of existence, transforming composition from an act of personal expression into one of devotion and contemplation. His various twelve-tone techniques thus become a means to an end, as do the pieces themselves; the ultimate goal of music is to commune with the infinite. This mystical approach to music is drawn from 19th-century romanticism and is certainly not exclusive to Hauer, though he may have been the most publicly vocal proponent of this idea in the Vienna of his day. In fact, much of the thinking of the Second Viennese School is bound up with the idea that music provides access to spiritual truth, an idea adapted from the writing of [[Arthur Schopenhauer|Schopenhauer]], who enjoyed considerable popularity at this time, especially among artists. Hauer often refers to the scientific writing of Goethe (the ''Theory of Colors'' especially), which most likely came to him through the editions and commentary of [[Rudolf Steiner]].<ref>Covach 2003, {{Page needed|date=March 2013}}.</ref>

The most important writings:

* 17 theoretical writings (1918–1926), 33 essays and articles (1919–1948)
* ''Über die Klangfarbe'' ("About Tone-Color", 1918)
* ''Vom Wesen des Musikalischen'' ("On the Essence of Music", 1920)
* ''Deutung des Melos'' ("Interpretation of the Melos", 1923)
* "Atonale Melodienlehre" ("Teachings on Atonal Melodies", manuscript, 1923)
* ''Vom Melos zur Pauke'' ("From the Melos to the Kettledrum", 1925)
* ''Zwölftontechnik. Die Lehre von den Tropen'' ("Twelve-Tone Technique: Teachings on the Tropes", 1926)
* "Der Goldene Schnitt. Eine Rechtfertigung der Zwölftonmusik" ("The Golden Ratio", manuscript, 1926)
* "Kosmisches Testament" (three "Cosmic Testaments", manuscripts, 1937, 1941, 1945)