# Music that inspires your writing



## Azza (Feb 8, 2012)

Hey guys, I was just wondering; I love to listen to orchestrated music when writing, for example the lotr soundtrack by Howard Shore or the Gladiator tracks by Hanz Zimmer. I was wondering if you guys like listening to 'fantasy music' and film soundtracks etc. List your favourites so others can listen and be inspired.

My personal favourite at the minute is the Skyrim theme song. I think it's called Dragonborn, I don't actually have the game yet myself so I'm not sure, but here's the link:  Skyrim theme song (1 day to go) - YouTube

Epic!


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## Chilari (Feb 8, 2012)

I think it depends on the mood I'm trying to evoke within myself, and on what I happen to like at the time I start a project, but recently there are three things I've been writing to. Noah and the Whale's album First Days of Spring - of which this is the title track, is one. The second the Three Fires album by local folk bank Whalebone (so local I bumped into Steve at Sainsbury's last week, and I used to work for Sarah) - this is the first track of that. It starts slow but speeds up and the whole album is awesome; folk music is great for fantasy. My favourite tracks are Wait, Three Fires, and Corndon Morning. It's on Amazon if you want to hear 30 second samples of those tracks. Finally, I was listening to Shiver by CN Lester while writing a scene which ivolved thick fog (you'll have to turn it up, it's very quiet) and CN's album Ashes, recently released, is available on itunes but not Amazon - yet. When it is I intend to buy it for the purpose of listening to while writing. The tracks I've heard so far are amazing.


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## Azza (Feb 8, 2012)

Wow! Just listened to the First days of Spring song, loved it! Thanks for introducing me to them   I agree, folk music and fantasy is a perfect combination, it has that real 'natural' sound which I always associate with sleeping under the stars and being with nature. Thanks for contributing


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## Dark Huntress (Feb 8, 2012)

I write on the iPad and there is an app called Ambience. This app allows you to mix your own music using nature sounds...rain, thunder, walking in snow..etc..., so I have soundtracks that I listen to depending on what my characters are doing.


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## Butterfly (Feb 8, 2012)

I have some favourites...

Poledouris - the music from Conan the Barbarian.

Gustav Holst and the music from the planets suite.

Richard Wagner - his music was used in the film Excalibur (along with Carl Orff's O fortuna). He also wrote the Ring Cycle (not sure what the German is for it) based around norse sagas and the opera has a lot of parallels with and was written before LOTR.

I also find R. Vaughan Williams to have written some great pieces for getting the imagination going, now he composed a lot, and seems to be focused around traditional tunes. Some recommended ones would be Fantasia on a theme by Thomas Tallis, The Wasps. For folk songs - The English Folk Song suite, Loch Lomond. And he wrote quite a few marches for military bands.


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## Codey Amprim (Feb 8, 2012)

http://mythicscribes.com/forums/writing-questions/1737-inspiring-music.html

This was a thread on the same topic a while back; check through it and see if you find anything worthwhile!


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## Aidan of the tavern (Feb 8, 2012)

At the risk of sounding a bit sad, I actually find quite a few game soundtracks inspiring:redface:.  No, no, no, I don't mean the Sonic the Hedgehog theme, but ones like Assassin's Creed and Fable have really well constructed soundtracks which are designed to give a feel for the setting and story, and so can be pretty invocative.


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## San Cidolfus (Feb 8, 2012)

I have somewhere around thirty gigs of musics floating through my electronic world, and all of it has been played while I hammered at my keys like an insane composer.  What I'll listen to depends on my mood.  I've listened to most of the instrumental greats listed above, Zimmer, Shore, Poledouris and such.  But let's not overlook Bear McCreary or Joe Hisaishi.

But if it's a battle scene, I'll need something more intense, like the magnificent Nordic ballads of Ensiferum, or a few more traditional tunes from Dio or Dragonforce.  Am I delving into the madness of a character's inner psychology?  Then I think some Nine Inch Nails are due.  And if I'm working on scenes whose core material is inspired by specific cultures, then it's time to go the source.  Are we in Japan?  How about some Kodo?  Nomads of the steppes?  Nothing like a little Yat-Kha to get into the proper headspace.


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## Benjamin Clayborne (Feb 8, 2012)

Movie soundtracks, instrumentals (Joe Satriani). Things without words tend to let me flow better; I get distracted by lyrics and want to sing along. I've probably listened to the _Inception_ and _Lord of the Rings_ soundtracks about fifty times each while writing _Mindfire_.


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## Needamedic (Feb 9, 2012)

Thanks for this useful thread to all. I too like instrumental music and epics like Fight for What You Believe. 

But then I am an old school rocker so I would have to agree with Benjamin in that Satriani and other classic rockers have a special place in my writing ambiance too.


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## Graham Irwin (Feb 9, 2012)

When writing, I'll listen to anything I like, as long as it's not too loud.

When I'm editing, it's nothing but Beethoven for me, or, at the very least, nothing with words. French is okay, I didn't pay much attention in class.


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## Reaver (Feb 9, 2012)

Thanks to Sheilawisz my new favorite is anything by Leave's Eyes.


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## Morgoth (Feb 9, 2012)

I don't find that listening to music inspires or helps me when I'm writing but I do prefer to listen to music when writing then not, as I find it relaxing to have some music playing in the background.


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## Klee Shay (Feb 10, 2012)

At the risk of sounding mundane, I listen to whatever is playng at the time. My music folder has mostly Oldies/Rock/Country/Blues/a little Jazz. I'm not much into instramentals or soundtracks, but I do like Satriani.


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## Kenny Smith (Feb 12, 2012)

Kamelot, Panic at the Disco, Death Cab for Cutie.


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## Argentum (Feb 13, 2012)

Movie soundtracks/scores and everything ever done by Hans Zimmer. I also like celtic, Enya, and Loreena McKennit. Depending on what music I need, I also listen to trailer music (Immediate Music or Two Steps from Hell). I also love the whole Skyrim Soundtrack and my favorite is also the Dragonborn track. Usually, music with lyrics distracts me, so I try to avoid it.


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## Androxine Vortex (Feb 14, 2012)

Kenny Smith said:


> Kamelot, Panic at the Disco, Death Cab for Cutie.



Kamelot is amazing live!

I usually don't actually listen to music when I write, only when I am brainstorming. But here's my typical playlist:

Equilibrium - Blut Im Auge
EQUILIBRIUM - Blut Im Auge - YouTube

Finntroll - Trollhammaren
FINNTROLL - Trollhammaren (HIGH QUALITY) - YouTube
I love these bands and they always put me in a fantasy mood.


Behemoth - Sculpting the Throne ov Seth
Behemoth- Sculpting The Throne Ov Seth - YouTube
This band has really good lyrics and inspires me to write dark fantasy

Nile - The Eye of Ra
Nile - The Eye Of Ra - YouTube
This has to be one of my favorite Death Metal abnds. Their sound is very evil and their lyrics are very well written. Since I use a lot of mythology in my writting, I like listening to this to get inspiration.

Fleshgod Apocalypse - The Betrayal
FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE - The Betrayal - YouTube
Come on, symphonic death metal is epic!

Ok now I know a lot of you probably don't like metal but I think you can like this. This band is called Dimmu Borgir and they are an orchestral black metal band but I also like listening to their tracks with just the orchestra in it.
Dimmu Borgir - Progenies Of The Great Apocalypse [Orchestral] - YouTube


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## Steerpike (Feb 14, 2012)

Good stuff, Andorxine. Personally, I think Stormblast is the best Dimmu album, though.

I love Nile, and also Opeth (older stuff), At the Gates, etc. Fintroll is pretty good, and I like some Korpiklaani as well.

Saw these guys perform a while back...good show, but Matt Pike is ugly:  High On Fire "Frost Hammer" directors cut / Album In Stores & Online Now! - YouTube

Also, there is a great band from Jordan called Bilocate. Here is a song from their last album (not the complete song for some reason, but over ten minutes of it): Bilocate - Blooded Forest - YouTube


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## Steerpike (Feb 14, 2012)

Reaver said:


> Thanks to Sheilawisz my new favorite is anything by Leave's Eyes.



You ever hear Liv's work with Theater of Tragedy, the band she was in before she went solo and then to Leave's Eyes? The album "The Velvet Darkness They Fear" is excellent.


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## Androxine Vortex (Feb 14, 2012)

Steerpike said:


> Good stuff, Andorxine. Personally, I think Stormblast is the best Dimmu album, though.
> 
> I love Nile, and also Opeth (older stuff), At the Gates, etc. Fintroll is pretty good, and I like some Korpiklaani as well.
> 
> ...



Nice! I love Stormblast (the revised version) and I'm not too fond of their new stuff.

I forgot to put Amon Amarth on the list but I listen to them when I'm in my Viking mood ]:cl>


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## Steerpike (Feb 14, 2012)

Androxine Vortex said:


> Nice! I love Stormblast (the revised version) and I'm not too fond of their new stuff.
> 
> I forgot to put Amon Amarth on the list but I listen to them when I'm in my Viking mood ]:cl>



Yeah, gotta love Amon Amarth. I saw them last year in Lawrence, Kansas. Was a great show. They came out for the encore and started Pursuit of Vikings. Everyone went crazy.


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## Androxine Vortex (Feb 14, 2012)

Steerpike said:


> Yeah, gotta love Amon Amarth. I saw them last year in Lawrence, Kansas. Was a great show. They came out for the encore and started Pursuit of Vikings. Everyone went crazy.



I am jealous! I remember at my High School we had a spirit week and one of the days was rockstar day. So me and my friends all dressed up as some of our favorite musicians. Last year I dressed up in viking gear brought in my guitar and walked around all day playing twilight of the thunder god XD

(The year before that I came in as Abbath from Immortal just yelling BLLLLEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!)


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## Steerpike (Feb 14, 2012)

Sounds cool.

I didn't know any death metal bands in high school. I guess bands like Celtic Frost and Morbid Angel were putting out some stuff. My favorite bands were Iron Maiden and Candlemass. I'm old


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## rachelwrites527 (Feb 16, 2012)

I listen to any number of soundtracks.  I can't listen to songs with lyrics, since it distracts me something fierce, and soundtracks have just the right amount of epicness in them.  I have a playlist on grooveshark that has soundtracks from The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, The Last Samurai, Inception, Pirates of the Caribbean, and V for Vendetta.


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## lizzy.d (Feb 23, 2012)

I often find myself inspired by the lyrics of some songs. I've been playing Mumford & Sons non-stop these past couple weeks and could find a place for almost every one of their songs in the "soundtrack" of my novel!


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## Rattlehead TVR (Feb 23, 2012)

In addition to all the other hard rock/heavy metal bands listed above I also like listening to a group called Turisas for epic heavy celtic rock with fiddles and barbaric chanting, check them out on you tube.

Rattlehead TVR


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## Fnord (Feb 23, 2012)

Neurosis, Virus, Tyranny. . . all that upbeat stuff.


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## Konstanz (Feb 24, 2012)

Hmm... Am I the only one that listens to punk rock and dubstep while writing? I'm probably the odd one out then.


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## Steerpike (Feb 24, 2012)

Konstanz - I like that stuff as well. I see no need to limit one's musical tastes to one or two genres. I like Rancid and Fugazi, among others, as far as dubstep goes. I like Skrillex.

I like everything from classical and opera, to old country songs, alt. country, punk, metal (classic metal, power metal, death, doom, etc.), goth, industrial, some rap/hip-hop, jazz (old Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald), motown stuff (Smokey Robinson etc.), Buddy Holly, Dylan, Hendrix, hard to classify stuff like Tom Waits during the Island record years, blue, Pixies, Bjork, and so on. 

As long as it is good, I'll listen to it.


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## Aidan of the tavern (Feb 24, 2012)

I listen to all kinds of music, but sometimes I listen to some really old stuff, and I mean really old Blues songs from the 30s onwards when I'm in the mood.


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## Privid (Feb 24, 2012)

For fantasy, I find that there's no better than movie and game soundtracks. Anything more specific than that preoccupies my mind and gets me to interact with the music, more so since I'm a singer, rather than just float along with it. Jeremy Soul is genius in that regard. World of Warcraft regional music is wonderful too.


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## Konstanz (Feb 24, 2012)

@Steerpike: Skrillex is not dubstep! 

I like Skrillex but he's more drum&bass on steroids. Some classify him as drumstep/filthy dub but that's making things overly complicated. I don't really care for labels myself either, I listen to all kinds of music. But it's mainly punk rock (Sum41, Blink 182), rap metal (Hollywood Undead, Linkin Park), rap (Eminem, Professor Green), Dubstep/Drumstep/D&B/... (Skrillex, Doctor P, Tek One). Pop music (Simple Plan, Train, Mattafix) just to name a few. 

I listen to the same music whether I'm writing or dancing (for some reason I like dancing. And drinking. Probably a connection between both). I don't see a reason to listen to classical music to get the muse going.


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## Androxine Vortex (Feb 24, 2012)

I kind of agree that Skrillex isn't really dubstep. He is a little bit of everything but not one thing exclusivley. I very seldom listen to dubstep when I write but if I do I would be listening to Ajapai, Wonkap, Datsik, Excision, and Rusko.


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## Aidan of the tavern (Feb 24, 2012)

Privid said:


> For fantasy, I find that there's no better than movie and game soundtracks. Anything more specific than that preoccupies my mind and gets me to interact with the music, more so since I'm a singer, rather than just float along with it. Jeremy Soul is genius in that regard. World of Warcraft regional music is wonderful too.



Jeremy Soule is a legend!  I'm actually in the middle of uploading some of his stuff on youtube.


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## Azza (Feb 26, 2012)

Just a thank you to everybody that's posted! I've been looking at some of the songs and artists that have been mentioned and now have a vast playlist on YouTube which I play when writing! I'm glad this thread had generated discussions and I hope it has helped some of you in finding music that inspires you!

- Thanks


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## Vanya (Feb 26, 2012)

I don't usually listen to music when I write, or else my mind takes off on different things instead of focusing on what I'm writing.  I tried heavy metal when I'm in a fight scene but usually it ended up becoming too violent than what I originally intended. No music for me.


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## Androxine Vortex (Feb 26, 2012)

It's more symphonic gothic style but check out Midnight Syndicate and Nox Arcana


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