The muse that sings : composers speak about the creative process
The Muse That Sings is a behind-the-scenes look at both twentieth-century music and the nuts and bolts of creative work. Here, twenty-five of America's leading composers--from Adams to Zorn, from Bolcom to Vierk--talk about their craft, their motivations, their difficulties, and how they how proceed from musical idea to finished composition. While focusing on the process and the stories behind specific works, the composers also touch on topics that will interest anyone involved in creative work. They discuss teachers and mentors, the task of revision, relationships with performers, and the ongoing struggle for a balance between freedom and discipline. They reveal sources of inspiration, artistic goals, and the often unexpected ways their musical ideas develop. Some describe personal tonal systems; others discuss the impact of computers and other electronic tools on their work; still others reflect philosophically on the inner impulses and outer influences that continue to drive them. Each interview has been edited to stand alone as a concise meditation on muse and technique, and the book includes selected discographies as well as brief biographical sketches. --From publisher's description
xv, 262 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
9780195168129, 0195168127
53046950
Eric Stokes
Steve Reich
William Bolcom
John Corigliano
John Harbison
Joan Tower
John Adams
Claude Baker
Dan Welcher
Daniel S. Godfrey
Fred Lerdahl
Shulamit Ran
Christopher Rouse
Steven Stucky
Libby Larsen
Lois V. Vierk
John Zorn
Michael Daugherty
James Mobberley
Bruce Adolphe
Bright Sheng
Richard Danielpour
David Lang
Sebastian Currier
Aaron Jay Kernis
Originally published: 1999