Orchestral for inspiration.

[HourglassMemory]

If you find orchestral music to help you to come up with any kind of funny of sad or dangerous moments in your stories....what were those musics? I'm talking about orchestral pieces.....from films or classical.....not songs with voices.
Lord of the Rings. Harry Potter and lots of Classical music have helped me to come up with a lot of funny scenes....specially Harry Potter's soundtracks.

[Albedo of Zero]

Korngold's score for The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)...the best for action.

I like Tchaikovsky too.

[Zolah]

I really like all the Lord of the Rings scores, especially Two Towers. I'm also listening to the Chronicles of Narnia Soundtrack at the moment. Two of my long term favourites are More Music from Gladiator (which has some really inspiring tracks, such as two mixes of Now We Are Free) and Master and Commander (brilliant tracks for writing battle or fight scenes to). The Russell Crowe connection is pure coincidence...

[Yeshanu]

Wagner.

Beethoven's Fifth.

LoTR soundtracks go without saying... :)

If you want a wide variety, I have a set of five compact discs by Deutsche Grammophon called "Absolute Classics Part 2" (I still haven't got Part 1 yet--that's another five discs). The set wasn't expensive--less than $25 Canadian for all five discs, and contains a wide variety of classical music, most of which has been used in films at one time or another. I have a five-CD changer on my stereo, and just start them up in the morning, giving me six hours of inspirational music.

[ChaosTitan]

I love film scores. I'll pick one as my mood strikes, rather than for what scene I'm writing. But the Hall of Fame includes scores for: Band of Brothers, Armageddon, Gettysburg, L.A. Confidential, Hook, Dreamcatcher, LOTR (all three), and Man in the Iron Mask. Almost anything by Howard Shore, James Newton Howard, or John Williams works.

I also have two other CD's of music that are wonderful for inspiration: Immortal Egypt and Espiritu Del Tiempo: Music of the Andes.

[AdamH]

Schindler's List soundtrack. The woeful violin of Itzakh Perlman is perfect for those sad scenes.

For action, my pick would have to be the Braveheart soundtrack. There's some great arrangements in that one.

[TrickyFiction]

Anything by Thomas Newman for me.
I have an entire story in my head to one of his soundtracks. I don't need any notes for it, I just pop in the album, and remember the whole story.
There are other albums that act as the soudtracks to specific projects, but a lot of them do have vocals.

[rich]

I tried but once to write while listening to classical music, or any other music for that matter. I chose Mozart. He made me extremely nervous and uproductive, really.

[willietheshakes]

I find that music which helps me achieve a trance or flow state is better for my writing than music which inspires or carries its own sense of narrative.

Some that work well for me:
Brian Eno - Tuesday Afternoon
Gavin Bryars - Jesus Blood Never Failed Me Yet
Bach - Suites for Unaccompanied Cello
Arvo Part - Te Deum
Jan Garbareck and the Hilliard Ensemble - Officium and Menmosyne
Hilliard Ensemble - Morimur
Phillip Glass - The Bowie Symphonies

[Jamesaritchie]

I can't say I ever listen to music for inspiration, but I do sometimes put on a Mozart CD simply because I like it so much. I also listen to Beethoven and Wagner, and I have several CDs of mixed composers. All great stuff. But given my druthers, it's Mozart.


About 90% of the time, however, I much prefer listening to old time radio dramas while I write. Primarily http://www.otrnow.com/otrnow/

[Bufty]

Wagner and Beethoven - yes!

[TrickyFiction]

I tried but once to write while listening to classical music, or any other music for that matter. I chose Mozart. He made me extremely nervous and uproductive, really.

This is primarily because Mozart blows.
Try Arvo Pärt, mentioned above, and Rachmaninov who is especially tasty. OOH! And, Holst. Mmmm...

[Serenity]

Oooo! A fun question. I played 'cello for 10 years, so this is fun for me. I have so many pieces that I write to. I'm particularly fond of anything Bach, but I have a special soft spot for his Brandenburg Concertos. I don't mind Mozart, but he's too... schizophrenic for me to write to. I loved playing his pieces, however- great 'cello parts.

I also am a fan of Holst. His 'Planets' suite is amazing. Dvorak just rocks and I use his when I'm looking for anger/sadness a lot of the time. If you're looking for a song that says 'journey' I recommend 'The Moldau' by Bedrich Smetana. It's simply beautiful.

As for soundtracks I tend to favor anything by John Williams. 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind', 'Star Wars' (take your pick, I love 'em all), 'Raiders' (again, take your pick), but I also love 'Willow' and 'Troy' by James Horner.

Now I'm off to re-program my Rhapsody player...:banana:

[victoria.goddard]

I like writing to most music, though I have to admit to a soft spot for musicals . . . especially Les Miserables (I can write to that for hours!)

I also like Bach (the Toccata and Fugue in D minor (I think) and the Brandenberg Concertos especially) and, er, Carl Orff's Carmina Burana is good for those rousing scenes. :) I also like Leonard Cohen (his earlier stuff live) and Loreena McKennitt, though they're not classical orchestral music, of course.

It's funny, I tried writing to Mozart's masses and I didn't find them particularly easy to do. I think calling them schizophrenic might be right--they don't flow well on a sort-of subconscious level. I'll have to listen to them again to see if that's the case.

[Jamesaritchie]

This is primarily because Mozart blows.
Try Arvo Pärt, mentioned above, and Rachmaninov who is especially tasty. OOH! And, Holst. Mmmm...



Mozart blows? Mozart is, without any doubt, the best who ever lived. He makes Rachmaninov look like a monkey on a toy keyboard.

[cwfgal]

I'll listen to darn near any soundtrack by James Horner but I have a collection of soundtracks by others, as well. I do classical music sometimes, too, with Rachmaninov ranking up there as one of my favorites. On rare occasions I'll listen to some New Age-y stuff...used to like Kitaro but don't much anymore. One of my all time favorite soundtracks features a Rachmaninov piece: Somewhere In Time.

Beth

[TrickyFiction]

Mozart blows? Mozart is, without any doubt, the best who ever lived. He makes Rachmaninov look like a monkey on a toy keyboard.

Dude, Mozart is bunny rabbits jumping in a field of yellow daisies.
His requiem is the only thing I can take seriously.
Eh. It's all personal opinion (except this. I'm right, this time. :tongue ).
I can't handle anything from the classical period, anyway. They were just a little :crazy: .

[Serenity]

Dude, Mozart is bunny rabbits jumping in a field of yellow daisies.
His requiem is the only thing I can take seriously.
Eh. It's all personal opinion (except this. I'm right, this time. :tongue ).
I can't handle anything from the classical period, anyway. They were just a little :crazy: .

hehe... yes, but you gotta give props to a boy who was composing orchestral pieces at age 5 and full symphonies by age 9. Again, I wouldn't write to his music, but go and see his pieces played with a full orchestra, the hair on your arms will stand on end.

I also forgot to add in my last post the Fantasia score (the original, though the sequel has some good music too).

[maestrowork]

I know some of it is corny, but... John Williams's music is also a good bet, ranging from the rousing Indiana Jones to the somber Schindler's List or Saving Private Ryan.

I like movie scores in general because I write stories that are cinematic... does it make sense? Other favorite composers include Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman, and Thomas Newman. Can't stand James Horner, though -- he recycles his own stuff too much. I usually just turned on XM radio and tuned in Cinemagic.

[HourglassMemory]

I know some of it is corny, but... John Williams's music is also a good bet, ranging from the rousing Indiana Jones to the somber Schindler's List or Saving Private Ryan.

I like movie scores in general because I write stories that are cinematic... does it make sense? Other favorite composers include Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman, and Thomas Newman. Can't stand James Horner, though -- he recycles his own stuff too much. I usually just turned on XM radio and tuned in Cinemagic.

Yes I do know what you mean by cinematic stoires...mine are like that too. They could be turned into a movie, tv series, cartoons, comic books...
And John William's work on Harry Potter inspires me like hell. And so does Patrick Doyle's on the fourth Harry Potter.

[roach]

I've been listening to the V for Vendetta soundtrack a lot lately. And I just got turned onto this group E.S. Posthumus (http://www.esposthumus.com/). They've scored some pieces for soundtracks (including the theme song to Cold Case). The songs in their album Unearthed are all named after ancient cities.

[NightWynde]

My great-grandmother introduced me to classical music when I was 8yo. We went to the annual 4th of July Hollywood Bowl celebration of classical music (at least it was then, lately it seems to be leaning more towards modern music) while my poor brother and sister were doomed to spend yet another year at the beach with my Mom and Dad. I was amazed at the sounds and the images that would just flow through my mind when I listened to the music.

However, what I think was more important was that we had the nose-bleed seats (ie, on the grass) where we had a picnic of fried chicken, potato salad, and way more soda than the average 8yo should have. Which is probably why I associate classical music with picnics and spectacular fireworks as opposed to black tie and formal garb.

So, what does this have to do with my writing? Well, for me, classical music makes for great "white noise" in whatever stage of writing I'm at (except for brainstorming at which time I'll lean more towards head banging metal, hard rock and the like). It calms me in a way nothing else can.

Well, except for Mozart. Not because he blows, but because my junior year in high school coincided with the time my mother decided to do her senior thesis (for college) on Mozart, so all semester the "big" stereo out in the living room was constantly playing Mozart's Magic Flute or something from (the film) Amadeus. She got an "A" for what was a revolutionary concept at the time (the effect of Classical Music, Specifically Mozart, on the brain or some such) and I'm proud of her for that. But still, Mozart makes my skin crawl.

[sunandshadow]

I don't listen to lyricless music much, but I had to get the southhampton and leaving port orchestral pieces from the titanic soundtrack because they were just so cool. :) I've got some classical-techno too, like from Vanessa Mae - I think her The Storm is mixed from Vivaldi. Night on Disco Mountain and A fifth of Beethoven are also classics.

[Novelust]

I like Saint-Saens' 'Danse Macabre.' I always imagine a duel when it hits the climax of the song.

And hey, 'O Fortuna' whenever I'm feeling evil.

Some less classical non-vocal stuff:

Tomoyasu Hotei - he's the guy you mind recognize behind a song featured in Kill Bill and Team America called 'Battle Without Honor or Humanity.' I also like 'Dark Wind' from the same album.

I'm also scarily fond of the London Philharmonic's take on Pink Floyd - 'The Great Gig in the Sky' on violin makes me weep like a kid (it's embarassing, really). :Sun:

[underthecity]

I'm writing a horror novel and like to listen to Midnight Syndicate's horror soundtracks. The music is awesome and sets the mood very well.

The ones I have sitting on my desk include:

Realm of Shadows
Born of the Night
Gates of Delirium
Vampyre
The 13th Hour

It's great orchestral Halloween music, but also nice to listen to all year round.

allen

[Cath]

Yes to Saint Saens and Holst. I like the really passionate stuff - Tchaikovski, Smetana, Mussorgsky, Vivaldi and Elgar (amongst many others).

There's a lot to be said for a gentle baroque choral piece too.

[Thomma Lyn]

Mmmm, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Bach, Mozart, Vivaldi - all wonderful. Also Corelli, Chopin, Beethoven, and Handel (Water Music and Music for the Royal Fireworks).

[Elektra]

To chime in on faves, Dvorak has to top the list. But I've found that I can't think clearly when listening to music, because my thoughts begin to synchronize with the beat rather than flowing naturally (though I have written a few chapters with Jimmy Buffett in the background).

[Serenity]

To chime in on faves, Dvorak has to top the list. But I've found that I can't think clearly when listening to music, because my thoughts begin to synchronize with the beat rather than flowing naturally (though I have written a few chapters with Jimmy Buffett in the background).

Dvorak rules. There is nothing quite like the fourth movement of his New World Symphony. And the second movement is almost too beautiful for words.

[Mayor of Moronia]

Francis Poulenc's DIALOGUES OF THE CARMELITES is maybe the most macabre music ever written. In the final scene an entire convent of nuns are guillotined as they sing Salve Regina. At the very end a young novice steps from the assembled crowd, mounts the gallery, sings a haunting aria and loses her head, too.

[Anonymisty]

The soundtracks from the two Pirates of the Caribbean movies for me - since my book's about pirates, it makes sense.

*arrgh*

[klostes]

I love threads like this; they're one of the best means of finding new music.

Two of the best "writing" Cds around are Jeff and Mychael Danna's A Celtic Romance and A Celtic Tale, "soundtracks" to the ancient Irish legends of Lidain & Curithir and Deidre, respectively. (Just be sure you don't get the "narrated" version of A Celtic Tale.) Soundtracks I use that haven't been mentioned are Last of the Mohicans, Children of Dune, Kingdom of Heaven and (the new) Battlestar Galactica. (Children of Dune you might recognise as the music from the Master & Commander movie trailer.)

I also like mostly instrumental world/folk music, especially Tim Rayborn's Rihla, Annbjørg Lien's Baba Yaga, Mouth Music (self-titled CD) , Karen Tweed and Timo Alakatila's May Monday, Dadawa's Sister-Drum and David Arkenstone's Music of Middle Earth.

[BardSkye]

"Tubular Bells" by Mike Oldfield is my trilogy outline, much like Uncle Jim's Celtic knot. It tells me when things get involved, when they quiet down, who joins with what, where and when.

I also use "Celtic Voices" and "Spanish Guitar" from the World Music series (Sorry, they don't have credits on them.)

[Elektra]

Dvorak rules. There is nothing quite like the fourth movement of his New World Symphony.

If I ever get married, I plan to walk down the aisle to that movement (which goes hand-in-hand with never having anything to do with Wagner).

[janetbellinger]

I need silence in order to write, unless I am just writing in my journal.

[Vomaxx]

First man: Do you like Mozart's music?

Second man: No. Some of his stuff sounds like it was written by a five-year old.

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I'm sorry to say I did not write this joke.

[Shadow_Ferret]

I rarely listen to classical music when I write. I need to be in a certain mood for classical and that mood has rarely coincided with my writing mood.

[Papa'sLiver]

It's not a movie soundtrack, but it's by a guy that does soundtracks (now). It's by spk, and it's called Zamia Lehmanni: Songs of Byzantine Flowers. It's wonderful. Some of it was used in the film Dead Calm. Helps me alot.

I also listen to the music from The Man With No Name Trilogy.

[John61480]

BardSkye mentioned tubular bells and I was wondering: Is that the same as the music playing at the beginning of The Exorcist?

I've recently gotten into the habit of writing without music, but sometimes when I need a pep, I just pop a CD in during the first draft.

My emotional rollercoaster CD's would have to be the Gattaca soundtrack by Michael Nyman or any of the early Enya CD's. However for extreme visual cues, I just can't be without "popular" music. For example: the latest album from Death Cab For Cutie or the Greatest Hits album by the Smashing Pumpkins. With the popular music behind the writing, I'd get neat music video montages written down for descriptions. A year ago, it really helped intensify my screenwriting creativity.