Spiritual Lives of the Great Composers

It's been a few years since I read this book, but at the time I was reading it, I absolutely loved it. I loved it so much, that I actually remembered the name of the book, and ordered it for my daughter who is now old enough to appreciate a book like this. She is playing the viola.The thing that I liked about this book, is that it brought out the nature of the lives of the different composers. They all had their struggles. Some were more religious than others. Bach was very religious, and Handel of course. What this book helped me to realize, is that the classical composers were more religious than most of us realize. Many of them, if not most, were Christians. They lived during a time in history, when the church had a lot of political power, and that power was used wrongly too much. But, they were still able to recognize the truth in Christianity, and I feel that because of this, God furthered their talents in music and blessed them. I feel like the Classical era of music helped to bring the people of the world, into a different place spiritually, so they were more able to hear what the Holy Ghost might say to them. This music brought the Holy Spirit into the world more abundantly and prepared the minds of the people for greater truth.The composers had challenges in their lives. They had weaknesses and some of them did quite a bit of sinning. But, they had faith in the power of beauty, and their music is beautiful and brings a sense of heaven to the listeners. I think there are some exceptions to this. I think some of the Russian composers were very disturbed, spiritually, and I think their music reflects this. It reflects the confusion and darkness that Communism brought to that country. I went to concert in Moab, Utah, one time. They had a bunch of Russian music being played. I didn't enjoy it. It was all disitant and not easy to listen to. It didn't make me feel good or happy. I don't believe those composers had the Holy Ghost with them, and so they weren't able to produce good music. But, on the other spectrum, look at those composers who did have the Holy Ghost, and what they were able to produce. Studies show that children get more intelligent just by listening to classical music. It creates more order in their minds.I think this book brings a sense of hope to the reader. It brings us hope because, even though our lives are hard and sometimes we don't feel the greatest about our relationship with God or who we are, we can remember that these great composers also weren't perfect. But, just look at how they blessed the world. They had a gift, and they used that gift to bless the rest of mankind. None of us are perfect either, but if we recognize the spiritual gifts that God has given to us, and use them to bless the rest of mankind, God will bless us and make us greater and better. It all comes down to recognizing God for what He has given us-personally, being thankful, and realizing that when God is in our lives, we are better for it. Christ brings hope to the world. This book helps anyone who reads it, to be motivated and to persevere. Read this book! It is inspiring.

"People of faith" will likely be the most interested in these mini-biographies of the great composers that focuses mostly on the spiritual (mostly Christian) aspects of their lives. In that light, this book helps fill-in some of the personal faith aspects of each composer that are rarely expounded upon in depth in the other biographies. Kavanaugh's distillations here extract many of the most personal conversations and writings of these composers in an attempt to "reconstruct" their inner, spiritual life. And while some of the common lingo in the letters written in 18th/19th century Europe did indeed contain more neutral and polite "God talk," most of the direct quotes go way beyond that to reveal deeply personal and theological thoughts about what that composer felt about God, faith and the relation to their musical lives. Kavanaugh cites Brahms as a notable example who supposedly revealed very deep theological thoughts and personal beliefs to writer/friend Abell, who published them finally in 1955 after years of avowed silence ("Talks with Great Composers"). Many will also find the author's account of Chopin's last years particular touching as the great poet-pianist embraced the faith within him that had faded to a flicker amidst the hedonistic Parisian lifestyle of the 19th century. Other composers listed here will appear to some readers to be somewhat of a stretch regarding the presence of a genuine faith in God and love of mankind in their lives. But, again, Kavanaugh presents other, more hidden aspects of their lives not common in other biographies that are worth hearing.However, trying to really understand the inner life and faith of a person - any person then or now - is a tricky proposition. It is tempting to extrapolate and make simple conclusions about a complex person based on a few words in a letter, and Kavanaugh might do this at times. But, other times the original writings Kavanaugh quotes seems to more clearly reveal a deeply spiritual person that might not have been apparent to others then or now. Overall though, this book is very revealing and presents a rather unique and detailed account of the spiritual lives of these great composers. As such it is a useful adjunct book on the topic. One caveat: given that the author's perspective here, you will not find any discussion on other religious or spiritual leanings outside mainstream 18th/19th century European Catholic/Protestant faith but will need to consult other sources if that is your interest. Other highly recommended books for general study of the great composers are (1) "The Gift of Music" which gives excellent biographies on 36 composers and also gives some Christian perspective ... and (2) "Lives of the Great Composers (Schonberg) which is one of the legendary references for the study of the composers and musical eras but reads more like a good novel than an academic treatise.

This book is well written but more then that it does a great job of describing the spiritual lives of these wonderful musicians who have given the world such gifts. Additionally it dispels some of the raucous and untrue beliefs about their behaviors.

Very pleased

Very interesting and great transaction

simple and good as an introduction to this subject.I will be sharing with other people interested in this subject

Good book! Thank you!

Insightful, touching & informative.