Do you agree with Beethoven?

I feel that this statement is true. For me right now....it is so easy be inspired to write something. You get a melody...or perhaps chords...or perhaps words. For me, I have problems finishing pieces. I come up with all these brilliant melodies....however, it's hard to expand on an idea....and thus the perspiration. I perspirate....but then....bam....I've lost it and I'm stuck.

I've got so many different composition projects going on right now....I would like to finish one. You know what I mean?

I think Thomas Edison said that quote :laugh:

Yes I agree with this, somewhat. Let's relate this to a businessman. Do you realize how many "ideas" people can come up with, but an idea is worthless if you don't have the initiative to take action. And this is what Thomas Edison meant. A businessman, or "genius" may have wonderful ideas, but if he cannot take the hard work or initiative to promote or make his wonderful ideas, the idea is worthless.

Same thing with composition. I believe a certain amount of effort (perspiration) is needed in order to become a successful composer, however I think maybe a little more than 1% inspiration is required. If you simply have no interest in composing, you will not put in the hours needed to become successful.

I started out a very bad composer. Nevertheless, I had the inspiration to compose for some reason, (alot more than 1% in this case), but I also worked hard at it every day for hours. In my case, I assume I spent on average 2 hours a day composing for 10 years. So that is an estimated 7300 hours of my time put into composition during my 10 years of composing, and I still have much to learn. Those 7300 hours of perspiration has tremendously aided my composition abilities, and that inspiration is what made me put in the 7300 hours.

So, in my opinion, I do feel hard work needs to be put into composition, even if you have a good deal of talent.

I voted no, however I don't feel I should argue my point because I cannot support my point of view with the concrete evidence of long-term experience of some of the others in these forums.

Suffice it to say that in my experience it has been quite clearly the opposite of this statement (which WAS Thomas Edison's BTW :laugh: )

From what I see... Sometimes. Most of the time, I have an idea, and I work a long time on it. But every once in a while, I get the idea intirely planned out, so I'm already done. So ya, sometimes, but not always.

I like to compose when I'm feel inspired, so it's probably a little less lopsided for me. Sometimes I'll force myself to write, but then whatever I come up with feels unnatural. So I usually centre it around inspiration and go from there.

Hmmmmmmmmmm..........................

I feel forced is slightly better, some of my best work is when i forced myself to do it, rather than be lazy and wait for inspiration :)

,Because once i get myself over that idea that I need this to compose, then i can slightly force myself to do it and enjoy what i'm doing. ;)

I voted no, because I think it's a silly way to look at it. How are you breaking it down? Time? Effort? Is it inspiration when you're enjoying it and perspiration when you're not?

Composing sometimes involves hard work, sometimes grinding out a few measures a day, and sometimes it just 'comes to you' complete, and all you have to do it write it down. And inspiration is essential if you are not to churn out bland repetitive work, so it's clearly more than 1/100th of the process.

I guess I could rephrase it thus:

Composition is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration, but only if that 1% is REALLY DAMNED GOOD!

;)

Adam.

I don't agree with that statement at all. Composing's fun and I only compose when I'm inspired. (and I've been inspired a lot lately.)This is how a song sounds when composed with 1% inspiration and 99% persperation for me. (and 3 minutes making it.)

(hey, new record!) As you could see, It doesn't doesn't sound too pleasant.

Simple.mid

i think it depends on the person... and many other factors that in fluence our composing

I think it's true, but it's a bit of an exaggeration, to make a point.

The majority of composing (for most people) is just plain hard work.

For alot of people, they come up with a good idea, and then work and work at it, so in a sense, he's right.

Saying composition is 1% inspiration, and 99% perspiration is slightly more poetic than saying composing is mostly hard work.

p.s.

Originally posted by Adam

Composition is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration, but only if that 1% is REALLY DAMNED GOOD!

it was Beethoven who said that :D

i voted "sometimes". i think that the composition can be different for different composers. difficult to make generalisations. it is said that Beethoven used to work hard on a piece to get it finished. on the other hand, there is a quotation from Mozart i have read somewhere and he said that at least for some works he used to listen the whole piece all done in his mind, and his only task was to write down the score. this is the exact reverse of the statement by Beethoven, but who could say that one way is better than the other? both them left wonders to the world.

but just see that Mozart LISTENED to his "own" pieces completely finished, and not that he had to work on them even just inside his mind. this is IMO the perfect inspiration and an acurate meaning of the word.

for myself inspiration is, say, 70%

come on people, music is just work, think about it, how long was the opening theme in Beethoven's 5? seconds, same for the Eroica symphony, what made Beethoven a great composer was not that he was a great melodious composer(he was good) but he knew how to develop a single simple theme/motif into an hour long of amazing music, that's genius there, hence the saying 1% inpiration and 99% perspiration is very true