The beginning of the 20th century was a time of progress in many ways. Technological advances and industrial revitalization made this period of time one of history's most prosperous eras. The turn of the century was also a time of advances and experimentation in the arts, especially in music. One man who certainly pushed the boundaries of music was Arnold Schoenberg. His music at first was characteristic of the Romantic style of Richard Strauss and Mahler, but eventually evolved into the highly chromatic music that featured his famous "12-tone" system of composition. From 1903-1925, he taught several students who, by his influence, continued to take 20th-century music to new heights. Among his students were Alban Berg and Anton Webern, who together with their classmates and Schoenberg are collectively referred to as the Second Viennese School by music historians!