Our greatest connection to a composer is through his music. And as a lot of the music we listen to is so exceptional, it is easy to imagine that the person who created it is also entirely exceptional. While there is no doubt they would have had exceptional musical talent and artistic insight, this almost makes it impossible for us to look at the other parts of their personality and life. Here is a rare photo collection of some famous composers showing some interesting aspects of their day-to-day activities.
Sergei Rachmaninoff cutting his birthday cake.
Béla Bartók looking trim.
Leonard Bernstein going for a swim in Israel.
Heitor Villa-Lobos playing billiards.
Richard Strauss playing cards.
Benjamin Britten playing tennis.
Sergei Prokofiev playing chess against violinist David Oistrakh with violinist Liza Gilels watching.
George Gershwin painting a picture of Arnold Schoenberg.
Olivier Messiaen with his son, Pascal.
Tchaikovsky with his family.
Giacomo Puccini at the Brooklyn Bridge.
Arnold Schoenberg and Winfried Zillig rocking one piece bathing suits.
Igor Stravinski rocking a speedo.
Edward Elgar smoking a cigarette with his dog Marco.
John Philip Sousa reading daily news.
Igor Stravinsky having breakfast.
György Ligeti pouring water on Pierre-Laurent Aimard on a train.
Ennio Morricone playing some ping-pong.
John Cage and Karlheinz Stockhausen flying a cartoon plane.
Dmitri Shostakovich showing off his billiard skills.
Theodor Adorno at the beach.
Zoltán Kodály playing with his children.
Ruth Crawford Seeger chopping wood on a beach with Carl Sandburg.
Giuseppe Verdi at a garden party surrounded by friends.
Manuel de Falla checking out a menu.
Richard Wagner with his family.
Krzysztof Penderecki doing yardwork.
Morton Feldman playing cards on a train.
Gustav Mahler at a party.
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky properly dressed for winter.
Erik Satie having a drink.
Gian Carlo Menotti walking his dog in the rain.
Paul Hindemith at an early age playing with a toy carriage.
Pierre Boulez and Simon Rattle chatting at a party in 1989.
Samuel Barber smoking under a tree.
Johannes Brahms having a picnic with violinist Marie Soldat and a couple other ladies.
Duke Ellington playing baseball.
Jean Sibelius having an afternoon tea.
Claude Debussy holding an umbrella on a beach.
Anton Webern bowling.
Camille Saint-Saëns wearing some fancy pajamas.
Jules Massenet petting his dog.
John Corigliano having a beer with an eland.
Antonín Dvořák having a picnic with his family.
Aaron Copland eating an ice cream cone.
Arvo Pärt and Alfred Schnittke reenact their high school yearbook photos.
Wonderful, thanks very much for sharing the wonderful photos.
Terrific photo’s. Thanks very much!!
Very Very interesting! Thank you