"Dichotomous forces of inspiration in the creative process"

In this thesis I focus on the following question: How do 24 creative New Music composers discuss the inspirational influences for two of their own compositions? Few studies of the creative process to date have focused on music composition alone. There remains a lack of understanding about the prototypical ways that pieces take shape and the core ideas and impulses that catalyze the process. In this paper, I explore the forces that inspire composers while they write and the relationship of these elements to broader theories of the creative process. To this end, I conducted in-depth interviews with composers at two different stages of professional development: in-training and seasoned. Composers were selected based on peer/mentor nomination or formidable commission records. These composers described their processes by referencing their written scores. Interviews were then analyzed using grounded theory in conjunction with theoretical frameworks that focused on the nature and source of inspirational influences and their manifestation in musical notation. Findings indicate that the creative process can be characterized by a single stage theory (i.e., distinct stages through which all of these creators pass), while at the same time encapsulating two basic prototypes: within-domain and beyond-domain composers. Within-domain composers are inspired predominantly by musical content. Beyond-domain composers are influenced mostly by conceptual frameworks from outside of the music domain. There is also a subset of creators that operates as both within-domain and beyond-domain composers with equal weight in their music.

I argue that my findings are important in the context of traditional scholarship because--despite some of the themes that cross-cut the two prototypes--stage theory may unduly gloss over fundamental differences among composers as they relate to the source, nature, and manifestation of influential matter. From a practice-based perspective, findings could inform the cognitive-psychological and process-oriented aspects of current course offerings in composition pedagogy, which is currently dominated by the study of "grammar" (e.g., harmony, counterpoint). Also, concrete information about the nature and manifestation of crucial factors in the creative process could be used to help identify and promote effective practices for fostering creativity in the workplace and in schools.