Finding inspiration!

[Keegan D. Bosch]

I am constantly spending time in front of my computer, sorrounded by instruments. But I can't seem to get anything down that i am happy enough with to finish.

Any tips on gettng inspired?

[Adrian Allan]

My advice would be to spend about 90% playing other people's music, and about 10% of the time making your own. And by that I also mean playing something unusual or challenging that you would not normally try. The more you absorb a wide range of musical styles, the less likely you are to fall into your own default cliches and mannerisms.

[Craig Hopkinson]

Hi Keegan, Dont worry it happens to us all. Its writers block...a forum member, Simon Godden posted an excellent suggestion for getting around the writers block by using a formula. I recommend you take a look, it could help:
htttp://composersforum.ning.com/forum/topics/773368:Topic 51665

Good luck!

[steve urwin]

Because creativity flows from from one sense to another we sometimes can see the picture without having a picture.Try to visualise a situation,a place etc.begin to play what you see....not what you hear

[Ray Kemp]

Listen to Beethoven,

You'll either be inspired or give up.

[AndrewG]

Some composers (e.g. Penderetskiy) recommend watching movies (well, perhaps not by TV). For me, a good inspiration trigger is playing a slow part of Bach's Italian Concerto. I can do this 10 times without stopping, this music agitates me so much; I play this with different virtual instruments on my keyboard. Reading good books is also helpful for musical ideas.

[Rob Rericha]

Things that inspire me are paintings, nature, people, (I try to express their personalities in music). I teach composition and have noticed that at times some people just don't have anything to say. Think about meaningful experiences and how they made you feel. I like tto take a notebook to the art museum and jot down musical sketches that I hear from the paintings, especially the impresinists. Consider your feelings about a certain person or idea. Feelings are a great inspiration.

[Craig Hopkinson]

Hi Rob, I base my entire compositional approach on music as a painting. I have posted my manifesto on this forum and it is clearly derived from my correlation with visual art. There is so much inspiration there and the ability to read music is not essential only the ability to create and interpret musical gesture.

[Rob Rericha]

I studied visual art as well as music. I was amazed to find they are the same thing just a different medium. I took ideas from music theory and applied them to painting. The result was very interesting. The paintings were abstracted but still recognizable. Somewhere between inpresionistic and expresionistic. But studying visual art gave me a whole new way of expressing mysel musically.I went to see Andrew Wyeth's 'Helga paintings and man. they completely changed the way I write music. They knocked me out.

[Craig Hopkinson]

This is amazing I too studied Modern Art with Music Composition and discovered exact parallels as you. I found myself immersed in geometric Abstract Expressionism visual art influenced by Kandinsky and in Abstract Art per se through Franz Kline, De Kooning, Rothko and to a lesser degree Klee. I actively encourage composers to consider music as resonance and gesture. Its a different mindset as you know but one whch can produce amazing results.

I launched a topic a while ago which received particular interest from some forum members. Maybe you couldtake a look?

http://composersforum.ning.com/forum/topics/773368:Topic:51432

[Rob Rericha]

Hello! This is great. I used to feel completely alone in the world. But not now. Did you know that Kandinsky wrote a book about the relationship of visual art and music? He had a real interest about it. Schoenbug was a visual artist first. I'm sure there are others but these are the ones I'm aware of. Happy New Year!

[Craig Hopkinson]

Hi Rob. I have the book. Its called 'Concerning The Spiritual In Art' terrefic read. Yeah and a Happy New Year for you too.

[Adrian Allan]

I like Viz, and often get the Viz Annual for christmas.

If you were like a Viz artist you'd be able to write parody style music of popular genres that was immensely popular.

I'd far rather be compared to a Viz artist than Tracy Emin; who to me is a talentless scruff-bag whose hair is in need of a good wash.