Page 30 - Composing Processes and Artistic Agency

The topography of composing work 19

Knowing what factors are effective in stimulating your productivity, and
under what circumstances you work well, is “personal knowledge” by
Michael Polanyi’s (1958) definition. The way you organise your work is based
on experience, insights derived from goals for certain activities that you have
met, and temporal resources. On the basis of these, you practise an ordered
daily routine that does justice to individual demands and requirements. And
yet the connection between work hours, organisation of the daily work routine
and living conditions shows that for most composers their composition
activities are not just work, but – despite their pragmatic attitude – a practice
that shapes their lives. This life practice – or in Ludwig Wittgenstein’s (1953/
1968: § 23) terminology, “form of life”– is characterised by the following:
imposing a time structure on the composer’s daily routine; prioritising his or
her artistic and musical activities both practically and emotionally; and
focusing efforts on certain goals while putting up with an often precarious
financial situation.

1.1.3 Workplace
Workplaces vary depending on the individual’s living situation, family obli-
gations, financial resources and personal preferences. Our interviewees
described very different workplaces: in their private living space or own
studio, or in public places such as coffee houses, train compartments and
public libraries. In spite of such differences, these places have to be appropriated
functionally and emotionally to the extent that the composer can feel at home
in them, or at least no longer consider others a disturbance. In his interview,
Bertl Mütter describes his living-room as his workplace. There he has every-
thing “that you surround yourself with. That’s where the books are, that’s
where the CDs are, the radio’s on, there’s the trombone and the computer. So
in principle it’s relatively interchangeable.” Strictly speaking, however, it is
impossible for the composer’s workplace to be interchangeable. Creative
workspaces need to radiate an atmosphere that encourages a specific mood of
concentration and inspiration. One interviewee addressed this problem
directly: “I used to work at home, but it drove me crazy. Because of the children,
among other things. Because something’s always going wrong. You actually
have to leave the house, otherwise you don’t stand a chance.” And when the
composer’s partner is also a musician and regularly has to practise at home,
this background sound can massively impair the composer’s chances of
working concentratedly. A workplace that is separate from the living space
structures how work is organised. It enables a spatial as well as temporal
division of the day into work versus private life (even though it is unlikely that
the separation will always be strictly maintained). Karlheinz Essl’s studio, for
instance, contains a multitude of instruments and technical apparatuses as
well as an extensive collection of books. Although it is a workspace,
this does not mean foregoing comfort: there is a sofa suite with armchairs.
Past composition projects, including various music sketches, writings and