Inspiration

“Every great inspiration is but an experiment.”

Charles Ives

Unconscious bursts of creativity that engender significant artistic endeavors are not necessarily inspired by passionate romantic love alone. Greek mythology believed that this kind of stimulus came from nine muses, the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. Muses were long considered the source of knowledge embodied in poetry, lyric songs and ancient myths. Throughout the history of Western art, artists, writers and musicians have prayed to the muses, or alternately, drawn inspiration from personified muses that conceptually reside beyond the borders of earthly love. True to life, however, composer inspiration has emerged from the entire spectrums of existence and being. Nature has always played a decidedly important role in the inspiration of various classical composers, as did exotic cities, landscapes or rituals. Composer inspiration is also found in poetry, the visual arts, and mythological stories and tales. Artistic, historical or cultural expressions of the past are just as inspirational as is the everyday: the third Punic War or the contrapuntal mastery of Bach is inspirationally just as relevant as are the virulent bat and camel. Composer inspiration is delightfully drawn from heroes and villains, scientific advances, a pet, or something as mundane as a hangover. Discover what fires the imagination of people who never stop asking questions.

873 Posts
  • The Invisible Force: Wind The Invisible Force: Wind
    The elements of nature frequently are represented in music: water, snow, and, of course, wind. We looked at a number of different works that might, literally, blow us away. We never see the wind but only the effect of the
  • Other Melodies of Death Other Melodies of Death
    We looked at how the Dies Irae melody was used in music from the 18th to the 21st centuries. Now let’s look at how the Dies Irae text was used. Composers didn’t always choose to use the melody regularly associated
  • Let’s Fly to the Moon!! Let’s Fly to the Moon!!
    Operatic Works Inspired by the Moon and Space Last year, I shared some music inspired by the moon to celebrate the moon festival. This year, I have compiled a collection of operatic works inspired by the moon and space. Il
  • Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and His Circle of Friends II Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and His Circle of Friends II
    The lawyer Nikolay Kondratyev (1832-1887) was first introduced to Tchaikovsky in 1864 at the estate of Prince Aleksey Golitsyn. They became fast friends in 1870, when the Kondratyev family moved to Moscow for the winter. Tchaikovsky was a frequent guest
  • The Melody of Death: The Dies Irae The Melody of Death: The Dies Irae
    Composers make up melodies all the time and create new and innovative pieces to show off those talents. Occasionally, though, they go back to older melodies, even melodies that they may not have written, and use them to make a
  • Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and His Circle of Friends Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and His Circle of Friends
    To his extensive entourage, fellow colleagues, and large circle of friends, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was “a sweet and caring man, full of excellent manners.” Yet in his own words, the composer considered himself almost antisocial. “By nature, I am a