The Klangfarbenmelodie reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Jul-2004 (provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Klangfarbenmelodie

Klangfarbenmelodie (German for sound-color-melody) is a musical technique that involves breaking up a musical line or melody out from one instrument to between several instruments. It adds greater color and texture to a melodic line, instead of just one timbre in playing the line.

The term was coined by Arnold Schoenberg in his text on harmony, Harmonielehre (1911). He and Anton Webern are particularly noted for their use of the technique.

Isao Tomita also uses the technique in his works, instead of musical instruments, he uses different synthesizer voices.

There is also a french term, mélodie de timbres, which means much the same and was used by Olivier Messiaen to describe his Couleurs de la cité céleste.

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