Writing to music

[Eowyn Eomer]

Does anyone else like writing to music? What I mean is you write while listening to music.

I avoid listening to music with lyrics because lyrics tend to distract me and I'll be sitting there singing along instead of writing.

I especially like movie soundtracks because they're mostly filled with non-lyric songs. Often I'll find a song that I just like that really stirs something deep in me and I will imagine a whole scene based solely upon that song. The songs that usually move me the most to write are very dramatic sounding.

[mr mistook]

I've been a musician for years, and when I hear music, even without lyrics, my brain automatically starts examining the composition. Music is just as distracting as lyrics.

I know a lot of people who can really multi-task when it comes to sensory input. My girlfriend can be watching TV, listing in to a song, reading a book, and chatting online all at the same time. I have no idea how she does this.

When I write, I have a "white noise" like a fan. Otherwise, I'm completely alone, and usually have the lights off, so that the only thing in the universe is the words themselves.

[annied]

Most times I write to music. Usually I try to pick something that fits the kind of mood or the kind of genre I'm in. For example, I have a soundtrack of sci-fi themes I listen to for some of my sci-fi writing, Wagner for the "sweeping epic, cast of thousands" scenes, and Celtic music for my current WIP (which has a Scotsman as a major character).

Sometimes I end up writing to the tune of The Wiggles or Songs from "Bear in the Big Blue House" or "Disney Playhouse 2". I had to get used to it...my son loves those! :rofl

[HConn]

No music. NPR on really low, so I can listen if I strain to hear, but it won't distract me if I'm concentrating.

[Eowyn Eomer]

My girlfriend can be watching TV, listing in to a song, reading a book, and chatting online all at the same time. I have no idea how she does this.
Well you can have the tv on, be listening to a song, have a book open in front of you, and be chatting online. But I will say that the human brain is only capable of concentrating on one thing at a time.

And I really don't understand what "multi-tasking" means exactly. When I started my job that I'm at currently, my supervisor told me I would need to be able to multi-task. "Multi-task" seems to be the new fad phrase to say, I've even seen it mentioned in commercials. But I really don't know what it means because I'm looking at it from a logical perspective like I mentioned above and that no matter how many things you have going on at once, you can only do one thing at a time and your concentration can only be at one place at a time.

:shrug

Otherwise, I'm completely alone, and usually have the lights off, so that the only thing in the universe is the words themselves.
I can't sit in the dark and stare at a computer screen, it hurts my eyes. I have to have the lights on. Now I can sit in the dark and watch a movie, but I'll probably fall asleep if I do that.

Sometimes I end up writing to the tune of The Wiggles or Songs from "Bear in the Big Blue House" or "Disney Playhouse 2".
I was introduced to the Wiggles when I volunteered in my church's nursery. I walked into the room and they had a tv in there with the Wiggles playing, the little ones were all jumping around and the adults were doing whatever the Wiggle people were doing. They told me to join. Yeah, right. I found a quick exit instead. :p

[novelator]

For me, nothing beats silence and solitude for writing. In fact, if for some reason I don't get enough over a period of days, I get fairly bitchy and people tend to help me find some. LOL I must have some redeeming qualities, they keep coming back. Then I wonder if they just don't have a high tolerance for pain. They never answer me when I ask. Go figure.

Mari

[Flawed Creation]

I don't necessarily write to music; sometimes i listen to music while i write, and lyrics don't distract me, (once i'm really writing the lyrics just wash over me, not really absorbed.), but it's not a big thing.

i do, however, plot to music.

whenever i'm having trouble what should happen next, or how to create the mood for a scene, i go listen to music that stirs my imagination. in fact, music got me itno writing- i found that when listeing to some types of music, i would see people in my head. then of course i had to write them.

for me, the best music is folk rock, especially by Rennaisance.

[Eowyn Eomer]

I don't necessarily write to music; sometimes i listen to music while i write
That's basically what I meant.

[katdad]

I usually write to classical music, especially Mozart, Bach, Haydn, Beethoven, etc.

And although I love opera (and have sung in numerous productions) I find it difficult to write while I'm playing an opera because I find myself picking up on the lyrics and singing along with the baritone parts.

[Writing Again]

I can, and do, write under any circumstances: parties, riots, screaming kids, 90 mile an hour winds; but when they are not around the only sound you will hear is the tap tap tapping of my keyboard.

[sc211]

From the dedication of Douglas Adams' The Restaurant at the End of the Universe:

To the Paul Simon Album One Trick Pony which I played incessantly while writing this book. Five years is far too long

[mr mistook]

I really don't understand what "multi-tasking" means exactly

Actually... I happen to know! :)

It's a computer term. primitive computers can only process things one command at a time, but an advanced machine with multiple processors can process several tasks simultaneously. This is known as "multi-tasking".

The human brain is capable of multi-tasking sensory stimili, though it is mostly a subconscious affair.

[mr mistook]

Five years is far too long


Wow! if it really took him that long to write one book in the four part trilogy... I'll take heart in that! I've been on my current WIP for a year, and it's nowhere near done.

[Jamesaritchie]

I sometimes listen to classical or Celtic music when writing, but far more often than not I listen to either talk radio or Old Time Radio. I listen to NPR, if there happens to be a program on that interests me as a writer. But 80% of the time, however, I listen to Old Time Radio.

I love the old radio programs such as Mystery Theater, Fibber McGee & Molly, The Life of Riley, The Whistler, The Shadow, Gunsmoke, etc.

I don't know about multi-tasking, but I find I have no problem concentrating on my writing while still paying attention to the radio programs.

I don't know if the brain is capable of concentrating on more than one thing at a time or not, but if it isn't it can still switch back and forth at a remarkable rate. I have no problem at all paying attention to everythng that's happening in the radio programs I listen to while still keeping a continuous stream of writing going. If I couldn't do this, I'd never get any writing done.

I'm not one who needs silence when writing. I have two phones, a TV, a radio, and a CD player in my office, and at one time or another I use them all while still writing.

[annied]

LOL, Eowyn :b

My hubby thinks the Wiggles are loony and doesn't understand their appeal either. I keep telling them "Remember their audience. It's the 2-5 year old set." How else can 4 grown Austrailian guys act like kids and get away with it?
I actually end up writing silly stuff when I listen to them. :rollin

Mr. Mistook, that's OK if you've been working on your WIP for a year and not done with it yet. I've been working on and off with my novel trilogy for the past 6 years and I'm not done yet.

[Aramas]

I've been working on and off with my novel trilogy for the past 6 years and I'm not done yet.

lol - I know how you feel. I keep thinking ahead to the second or even third book, and it's only recently that I managed to come up with the meat and potatoes that hold the first book together.

There's something paradoxical in having to bring order and discipline into our travels within our own fantasy world :)

[kevacho]

Hi,

I usually listen to music when I write. If I don't, it's simply because I got into a vibe or a mood I fear, at that moment, to break.

Try anything by Peter Gabriel, most especially his sound track to "The Last Temptation of Christ", called "Passion". Also, Dead Can Dance is always very good, very dramatic. For ambient music without words, you could try the soundtracks to the Myst games: Myst, Riven, Myst- Exile. I have all three, and they're great for getting my head in the right place.

Kevin
www.kevacho.com

"Don't forget the joe." :coffee

[stormie267]

Flawed Creation wrote:
for me, the best music is folk rock, especially by Rennaisance.

Renaissance! Didn't know anyone else remembered that group from the '70's. Loved their music...I have to look them up on Amazon and get their CD's.

Now, when I write, it can't have lyrics, or I'll be typing in the words to the song rather than the words I should be typing in my novel. Someone, on some writer's board somewhere, mentioned a CD called "Inward Harmony" by Marcey Hamm. It's unbelievable. Everyone seems to react differently to it; I find it soothing and helps my imagination go at full strength. Many say it has healing qualities. Don't know about that, but, hey, you never know....

[Zazopolis]

*puff* *puff*

"Turn it up, man."

If one picks particular artists with lyrical abilities and matching philosophies, it can be a great inspiration to write with lyrics. Then again, there is also reverse interaction with some artists as they expound lyrically and through music the ideas of some other writer outside the musical sphere. Who doesn't like a good concept album?

"Hey man, pass me a brownie, dude."

Then again, if I start writing -I can't go for that- because I'm blastin' out some Hall & Oates on vinyl, well, no can do.

I'm writing this and my internet music provider of choice is whippin' out Floyd's Welcome to the Machine. I don't think it really affected the outcome of this post anymore than making me whack out if I start thinking about it too much.

I'd say writing to music is pleasuable but there is something also to be said for sounds of nature, dead silence, screaming babies, public restroom foul and fowl like noises, even I'm sure Peabo Bryson for somebody.

[Arisa81]

I love to write in silence, or the closest to silence I can get, being my own thoughts (always good when writing), and sounds of the outside world.

If I decide to have music on while writing it will most likely be classical or new age stuff with waves and birds etc. Lyrics seem to distract me, but can be useful if I'm having trouble thinking of something to write about.

But the more writing I want to get done, silence seems to work.

[Ivonia]

I almost always listen to music if I'm not talking to someone else or in class/at work. Like many here have said, music really helps motivate me and stir my creativity, esp when I'm hitting some major roadblocks in the story, or need to spice up a scene.

Of course, this is probably where most of the similiarities end. While I *can* tolerate any kind of music short of ones with excessive swearing in it, the kind of music that really motivates me is movie soundtracks (minus songs with lyrics in them) and, oddly enough (for most people anyway), video game music. I'm not talking about old school Nintendo/Mario music, I prefer 16-bit era and up (my favorites being Final Fantasy soundtracks, esp. the one from 6 and 10).

The reason I listen to it is because I grew up playing these games, and the music often matched the mood that we should be feeling in the game, whether fear, revenge, excitement or happiness. And since most of my ideas would probably be better in a game than a book anyway, I figure I might as well listen to it and let it help me create a story worth telling. I suppose we'll find out in a few years if this "craziness" worked or not hehe.

[James D Macdonald]

Traditional folk, classical, and requiems are my preferred listening.

Oh, yeah, and for a heavy deadline, Pharaoh by Richard Thompson, played by The House Band, in infinite repeat.

[Euan Harvey]

I need silence to write. I can cope with white noise like the air-con, or a fan, but anything like music or conversation, and my brain starts to wander.

I think I have a non-multi-tasking brain.

:)

[Pthom]

Jazz, turned down low, so that I can't hear lyrics (when there are any) or the announcer. I am most productive in the wee hours, when the station my radio is permanently tuned to plays nothing but jazz classics. During the day, I can manage editing but when "All Things Considered" and other NPR and PRI programs are on, I come here and browse. :grin

[Aramas]

The three sounds I loathe the most are yappy little dogs that won't shut up, lawnmowers, and those weed trimmer thingies. My neighbours have the yappy little dog from hell, and since they have Downs syndrome, there's really nothing I can do about it except crank up the music.

Consequently, I do everything to the accompaniment of loud trance/dance/techno music :)

[Shadow Ferret]

When I was younger I used to do a lot of reading of sword and sorcery, especially Conan, Elric, and Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser. It was a genre that was very popular in the early 70s. While reading, I'd listen to Black Sabbath and some Jethro Tull. So much so that when I heard a Sabbath tune, my mind automatically gets into this "mood" of that kind of fantasy. So I find it helpful to listen to when I'm writing.

[Eowyn Eomer]

There is a particular style of music that I really like but I don't know what it's called. I don't think it's opera. If I could find an album full of it, I'd buy it. But don't have a clue what it's called even.

It has vocals in it, but they're not singing English. Probably Latin. I'm one who isn't distracted by lyrics if they're in another language. So I actually feel inspired by this kind of music.

The kind of music I'm referring to is like the musical score to the fight scene in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace when Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan battled at the end with Darth Maul. It was very dramatic music with vocals, but they weren't singing in English.

Anyone know what kind of music I'm talking about and could recommend a good album?

[Jamesaritchie]

It's been so long since I watched Episode 1, and when I did watch it I wasn't terribly impressed, so I may be wring about this, but if memory serves I think you're talking about choral music, though I honestly can't remember the movie well enough to be sure.

This is really stretching my memory, but is the music you're talking about called "Duel of the Fates," or is that another part of the soundtrack?

One things I do like to listen to a great deal, if it's done well, is Gregorian Chants,

I also love listen to female Gaelic singers who sing in Gaelic, and have those impossibly pure voices, even tough I understand only about one word in eight.

[vstrauss]

>> Try anything by Peter Gabriel, most especially his sound track to "The Last Temptation of Christ", called "Passion". Also, Dead Can Dance is always very good, very dramatic.<<

Kevin, you and I must have quite similar musical taste...

I have to have total silence to work. I have a pair of rifle range headphones I wear when the next-door dog goes on a barking jag or my husband starts shouting on the phone (we both work at home).

- Victoria

[Vanessa99]

I like to listen to music while writing, but I do not think it is wise. Your mind will connect what ever you've written with that song, so while you may percieve your writing to have a certain mood, another reader will not. You will percieve this mood or effect because you listened to that song. So while it might be pleasant to listen to, it may effect your objectivity to your own work.

[Jamesaritchie]

I like to listen to music while writing, but I do not think it is wise. Your mind will connect what ever you've written with that song, so while you may percieve your writing to have a certain mood, another reader will not. You will percieve this mood or effect because you listened to that song. So while it might be pleasant to listen to, it may effect your objectivity to your own work

I don't think this is a problem. It certainly isn't for me. I don't connect the mood of a song with the story I'm writing, and besides, I may listen to a hundred or more songs and score while writing a short story, and a thousand while writing a novel. Which song or score would change my perception?

And the kind of stories I write simply can't reflect the mood of the songs and music I listen to. They're incompatible. There's no way I could be influenced into perceiving the mood of the story a different way because of the mood of the song. One minute I nmay be writing a horribly dark scene to light, happy music, and the next writing a light, happy scene to dark and tragic music. But it just isn't an issue in any case.

I've always listened to songs or music or Old Time Radio when writing, and it's just never been an issue.

I can write in silence, it doesn't bother me at all, but I find no need to, and the music/songs/ Old Time Radio are things I enjoy greatly. Writing time is simply the best time to listen to them.

I know a great many writers who listen to music as they write, and it just doesn't seem to be a problem for them, either.

[Cyyschn]

Eowyn, if you're referring to the "Duel of the Fates" song then that's simply choral/orchestral music, if I'm not mistaken. Even something like Beethoven's 'Ode to Joy' falls under that category. I'm not sure how much contemporary music goes that way, but a good deal of music from--I guess--the baroque, classical, and romantic periods would fit there. Unfortunately, only 'Ode to Joy' and Bach's 'St. Matthew's Passion'--the end part, at least--are coming to mind. But I'm sure some looking on amazon would result in something.

As for myself, I'm always listening to relatively obscure electronica, and classical music. I'm really liking Progressive House right now--Sasha, Hernan Cattaneo, James Holden, etc. But I always like Autechre and BT and Nobukazu Takemura and Vladislav Delay, etc. And with classical: Vaughan Williams, Mozart, Stravinsky, Dvorak, Resphigi, Debussy, etc. And when I'm on the computer: di.fm and proton radio. Never do I write without those sounds.

Does anyone have any idea who any of those artists are?

cyyschn

www.sarbruis.com

[Redwriter]

Rock and roll, the older and louder the better. I like the energy, the drive and the excitement.

Spitfire

[kevacho]

Eowyn Eomer, :grin

The piece you're referring to from that hideous, mockery of a Star Wars movie (I'm an old Star Wars fan, so forgive me for my vehemence) is John Williams'- the composer of every single George Lucas and Steven Spielberg movie- pathetic attempt to copy the music of Carmina Burana, specifically the song O' Fortuna. If you want, go into the classical section of any music store, and ask about Carmina Burana, there are many different permutations of this and other pieces, all of which were supposedly found in a Benedictine monastery in Germany during the 19th century, but were written somewhere in the 13th, and or, 12th centuries.

However, if you like this choral style of classical music there are some sound tracks you should check out. Basil Pouledouris' soundtrack to "Conan the Barbarian" is excellent; very similar to the O' Fortuna piece with much more of a pounding, drum inspired rhythm. The soundtrack to the movie "Glory", by James Horner, has one of the best O' Fortuna rip-offs I've heard. Strangely enough, there's a Japanese Anime called "The Vision of Escaflowne" that also has a long, choral version of O' Fortuna, albeit this one's going to be hard to find.

For a more modern spin on things, any soundtrack to a Michael Mann film is superb, he usually puts everything from Lisa Gerrard to Einstaurtzen a Nuebaten (I probably spelled this wrong) in his films. Again, I cannot recommend Peter Gabriel enough, especially his sound track to the movie "The Last Temptation of Christ", entitled "Passion". This is by far the best soundtrack album I have in my collection. And don't forget to check out anything by the band "Dead Can Dance"… moody, simple, yet brilliant.


Kevin
www.kevacho.com


"mmmm... coffee!":coffee

[Eowyn Eomer]

The piece you're referring to from that hideous, mockery of a Star Wars movie (I'm an old Star Wars fan, so forgive me for my vehemence)
Actually, I think the new trilogy is a joke compared to the old one. I just bought the soundtrack because I like that one song. :p My absolute favorite movie soundtrack to listen to is Return of the King. Howard Shore is a brilliant composer.

[kevacho]

Eowyn Eomer,

You couldn't be more right, and I couldn't agree with you more, as it concerns the odious, steaming piles of fecal matter that are the new Star Wars trilogy, or prequels... or whatever! Moreover, nor could my agreement be more... agreeable, than if I was Jedi knight wielding a light saber and a rat-tail. :grin

Howard Shore is great as well. I liked his work in Philadelphia. Mark Isham is also phenomenal; his compositions appeared in two of my favorite movies, "The Hitcher" and the little known, "The Beast". More recently, he's composed the soundtracks to "Blade" and "Miracle".

Keep writing... and keep listening...

kevin
www.kevacho.com

"bevvy of bountiful bliss..." :coffee

[Flawed Creation]

Carmina Burana if an oft-copied piece

the popular anime "Vision of Escaflowne", for instance, most exciting battle song was part of burana with a high-pitched violin added.

it's still a great show.

[DarkHaven80]

Absolute silence stiffles my concentration. Most of the time my creativity too ;) I can't stand lyrics either. I can write with the TV going and people around but only slowly and it doesn't come out right. The best for me is being alone with some sort of music without words. The Interview with the Vampire soundtrack is great. Gorgeous and inspiring. The same can be said for much of the Braveheart soundtrack. Some of the classical songs on City of Angels is nice for softer times. I've recently gotten into a small sampling of celtic music and so far it seems to be relaxing. I think it would work well with writing but I haven't tried it yet.

[katdad]

Anyone know what kind of music I'm talking about and could recommend a good album?
I don't know what music was in the Star Wars background but you may be thinking of "Carmina Burana" by Carl Orff. This is a very famous but not recognized composition, heard a lot during fierce fight scenes, especially between mongol hordes and the like, and also in many TV commercials.

It's currently heard as the music to the Capital One TV ad where the warriors storm the Christmastime shopping mall and then go away frustrated.

You can sample "Carmina Burana" on Amazon, track #1, "O Fortuna". And yeah, the lyrics are in Latin, and also German. I sang this last year and it was a hoot!

And if it's the composition you're thinking about, I highly recommend a specific recording on the RCA label, with the Boston Symphony conducted by Seiji Ozawa, baritone soloist Sherrill Milnes. This is a terrific recording, very dynamic and top quality throughout.

[maestrowork]

Carmina Burana is a good one, but I find it too distracting -- partially because I've performed that like 5 times already, so i can't help but sing along... :b And I generally find anything by John Williams, or opera distracting.


Vangelis' 1492: The Conquest of Paradise Now is a good one for meditation as well as writing mood. I think the choral is in Latin.

The soundtrack to Dragon Heart has been used by almost every movie preview :lol But it's a good one.

Sergei Prokofiev's Alexander Nevsky is a phenomenal album. "The Battle on the Ice" is pretty much the prototype of all battle anthems. "The Field of the Dead" is haunting. If you're writing battle scenes, highly recommended. The choral's in Russian (I know, because I sang the darn thing too).

I have grown to love writing to Friday Night Lights by Explosions in the Sky. What a moody album. It's great for writing contemporary fiction. It's all intrumental/guitar -- beautiful.

[drgnlvrljh]

There is a particular style of music that I really like but I don't know what it's called. I don't think it's opera. If I could find an album full of it, I'd buy it. But don't have a clue what it's called even.

Sounds almost like you've described Qntal. The vocals are almost operatic, and mostly in latin (from the sound of it). It's sort of a cross between opera-ish, The kind of stuff you'd hear at an Abbey (except with female vocals, rather than male), electronica, and light rock. I love it, myself.

Qntal on Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index%3Dmusic%26field-keywords%3Dqntal%26results-process%3Ddefault%26dispatch%3Dsearch/ref%3Dpd%5Fsl%5Faw%5Ftops-1%5Fmusic%5F6114018%5F2/102-5481440-1134547)

There's also Nightwish (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index%3Dmusic%26field-keywords%3DNightwish%26store-name%3Dmusic/102-5481440-1134547) Which is metal-opera.

As for the OP question? Yes, I listen to music when I write. I'll even hunt down and locate the lyrics for a song, if that song helps with the mood of the chapter, or scene I'm working on, and tack it at the top of the Chapter or scene, because it helps me remember the mood I'm looking for (It'll get deleted when I'm done with revisions). I've managed to "collect" about 6,000 MP3s from friends all over the planet, and ripped from my own extensive CD collection, and there is this HUGE variety of turnes. I have at least an hour or more of music for whatever mood I'm looking for, and I have some pretty bizarre playlists (A mix of Rammstein and Nine Inch Nails seems reasonable, but what about a mix of Rammstein, with Janice Joplin, and Mideaval Baebes?). But they work for the moods I'm creating.

[drgnlvrljh]

Kevin! I adore Dead Can Dance and Lisa Gerrard! Her a capella rendition of The Wind That Shakes the Barley is positively heartbreaking!

I've been listening to alot of "ethereal" (at least that's how my iTunes classes it, and it kinda fits) during this story. It seems to be working pretty well, since I'm aiming for a surrealist type of mood. So, alot of Dead Can Dance, Lisa Gerrard, Mediaeval Baebes (I can never get that spelled right), and beautiful voices like Loreena McKennitt, Qntal and Nightwish. Haunting melodies like you get from Stoa and Sonata Arctica. I also have a few pieces from Sisters of Mercy.

ACK! I should never have looked in this thread! Getting me started on music is a bad idea! :lol

[athena_biddy]

I can't seem to listen to music when I write. When I listen to music, with lyrics or without, I tend to pay attention to the music more than what I'm writing. I get lost in my stories and so silence allows me to go to the setting of my story. Does that make any sense?

[williemeikle]

I do most of my writing on a palm-held while commuting, and I listen to my Ipod to drown out the inane chatter of my co-inmates in the slow moving metal box....

Today it is old Led Zeppelin .... live BBC sessions from the late 60's

Willie