Why I Compose (Part 3)

So what are some of the ways I discover inspiration to write? Sometimes personal and outside influences affect what I eventually turn into music. After watching a particularly touching film, I wrote a piano piece called Devastation. After being overjoyed by a poem by Wordsworth entitled Daffodils, I decided to set the poetry to a comical short song, a project I'm still working on. Current events, such as the recent tragedy of Hurricane Katrina have inspired me to write for a cause. Although in truth I had written the music before Katrina, I chose certain pieces that I felt reflected ideas and feelings I had experienced during the time. The music was free piano improvisation, and I felt that the unrestricted quality of the music was appropriate. I labeled the album, The Calm before the Storm, to try and restore a sense of peace, and to reassure myself and others that after a disaster, life can go on.
How does one develop the craft of composition? The most obvious example is by listening to the music of the great composers. I listen and study tirelessly to as much music as I can get my hands on. Examples of composers who have definitely influenced my writing style include Beethoven, Bach, Prokofiev, Bartok, Rachmaninoff and others. I admire Bach for his sheer pragmatism and undying spirituality, Beethoven for his humanism and his rebellious breaking with conventional wisdom, Prokofiev for his florid and vibrant orchestration, Bartok for his embrace of the dark side of human nature, and Rachmaninoff for his master y of piano composition. All of these composers have a large influence on what I write, consciously and unconsciously. In a way, the composers of today are more like musical arrangers. So much material has been presented to them that it is sometimes difficult to find a voice. This can be seen as a burden but I believe it is a blessing. I think all composers are a mixture of what came before them and what they have to say that is new. All good composers, past and present, have studied those before them. The famous example is the strict tutelage of young Wolfgang Mozart by his father, Leopold Mozart, who was also a composer. Leopold instilled in Mozart the traditions of the 18th century, the symphonic and operatic forms that were to become such an integral part of Mozart's style. The art of classical composition is a living tradition, and we must not forget those who have established this art in all its grandeur and beauty.