Writing away and listening to Boz Scaggs, Lido Shuffle, JoJo, Dirty Lowdown. It's calming background while I write. Tell me everyone, who do you turn to to occupy the hours while you write?
Screenwriting : What artist do you listen to while writing? by John Mezes
What artist do you listen to while writing?
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I love to get immersed in mostly instrumental music while writing, recently on my Pandora stations I've been expanding the Booker T. & The MGs station from soul tracks to more jazz and enjoying it a lot, tons of sax music including a lot of King Curtis, also Kenny Burrell, Galactic, I love Pandora in Discover mode as it introduces me to many things I haven't heard before!
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Honestly, it depends on the project I'm working on. For Masks, which is set in the 1976, I was listening to a lot of music from that time period, as well as some European metal (In This Moment, Doro, Rammstein). For Young Goodman Brown, which is set in Salem 1725 + 1700, I found myself listening to many classical works (Wagner, Beethoven). With my current screenplay, On Monsters, it is set in the eighties and is primarily action. A lot of top 40 hits (1980-1987) and electronic music for this one. Primarily a band called Scandroid. Hope this helps.
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I have three loves in this world; film, cars, and music. I've spent my whole life seeking out new music artists and thus I listen to a highly eclectic selection. I love to listen to music when dreaming stuff up but absolutely cannot listen to it while I draft.
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John, I'm like Matthew in that what I listen to when I'm writing depends on the screenplay I'm working on.
When I typed out "The Nutcrackers," about a couple of ballerinas doubling as blues musicians in Kansas City, MO, I listened to blues albums...mostly stuff by B.B. King, Albert King, Bobby Bland, Koko Taylor, Little Junior Parker, and Little Milton. Working on "Jingle Belles" (set in 1959 New York City) found me listening to rock/R&B hits from mid-1958 to mid-1959...and when I wrote "Pixie Dust," which was set in Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN, I put on Prince, Morris Day, the Time, Sheila E, and Alexander O'Neal.
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For me, it depends on the project. Right now, I'm working on adapting a memoir, so I'm listening to a lot of Rachel Portman and James Newton Howard (especially his score for Terrence Malick's A Hidden Life).
The animated fantasy feature that I've been working on for forever includes Howard Shore, Alexandre Desplat and Michael Giacchino.
I listen to a wide variety of film scores when I'm writing, each inspires me and paints unique pictures in my head that are independent of the films they were written for.
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I like to match the music to the script genre, LAURA HEMINGWAY, a long pull from her drink, waiting for the intro to come all away around again, stoned & a little nervous. From the group, support, a couple whistles & cheers. LAURA suddenly transforms herself, faux poses & vibes the groovy, Mariska Veres, lead singer for Shocking Blue.
LAURA
A goddess on a mountain top,
was burning like a silver flame,
the summit of beauty and love,
and Venus was her name.
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Current working on my feature biographical drama based on a family based true story in Germany. Vibes of the NEUE DEUTSCH WELLE are truly guiding my writing. NENA, SPLIFF, HUBERT KAH just some of them.
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I'm going to have to try it the CJ way! I tend to put on "mood music", but that may just to drown out the distracting noise around me LOL I've started writing in a little creative nook where the quiet is actually quite helpful.
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this might sound weird but here goes.... I work with 2 computers, one not connected to the internet with a few thousand songs I downloaded before Napster shut down, my music editing program is Magix musicmaker7,I load a song that inspires me and edit three or four sections that are the most inspirational, then layer them together and loop them creating a rave like atmosphere where I interact with my characters.
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If you're looking to drown out distracting background noise then check out Coffitvity which has proven to improve productivity.
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It depends on what I'm writing. Mostly I turn to Disturbed, Sick Puppies, and Evanescence.
Huh... @CJWalley - you continue to amaze, my good sir!
Three Doors Down, Red Rider's "Lunatic Fringe", and a You Tube channel called "White Sand".
Whenever I'm creating characters and scenes in my head, I prefer classical piano: Rachmaninoff, Mozart, Chopin...After a breakthrough, I prefer rock music: Queen, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Orphaned Land...
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I have to listen to music. Because I like to make people cry and hate me forever when I write, I have to listen to sad music that makes me cry. Right now I have on a constant loop "Almost Lovers" by Fiest, "Jar of Hearts" by Christina Perri, and anything that is slow by Sara Bareilles. Also, the last song from the Lady Gaga version of A Star Is Born. I only have to LISTEN to that song to break into a full-on crying fit. No joke.
(Side note... if you want to watch a beautiful film about the restorative power of love, just watch A Star Is Born up to the part when they sing the song he wrote for her towards the end. Then TURN THE MOVIE OFF AND PRETEND IT FADED TO BLACK. If you want a piece of your soul to die, keep watching to the end.
If you have not seen the movie yet, this has been your warning. That movie takes away a piece of your SOUL)
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Amara, A Star is Born (the Cooper version) is both a beautiful film and a tragic one at that. Suffice it to say, I was both thankful and regretful that I saw it.
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Film scores. Jerry Goldsmith, Bernard Herrmann, or whatever matches the specific scene that I am writing.
The background music in the film is going to be a score by some great film music composer, might as well write to that music.