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.
Antonín Dvořák having a picnic with his family.
Claude Debussy holding an umbrella on a beach.
Igor Stravinski rocking a speedo.
Sergei Prokofiev playing chess against violinist David Oistrakh with violinist Liza Gilels watching.
Aaron Copland eating an ice cream cone.
Benjamin Britten playing tennis.
Ruth Crawford Seeger chopping wood on a beach with Carl Sandburg.
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky properly dressed for winter.
Ennio Morricone playing some ping-pong.
Erik Satie having a drink.
Johannes Brahms having a picnic with violinist Marie Soldat and a couple other ladies.
Gustav Mahler at a party.
Gian Carlo Menotti walking his dog in the rain.
Manuel de Falla checking out a menu.
Camille Saint-Saëns wearing some fancy pajamas.
Jules Massenet petting his dog.
John Philip Sousa reading daily news.
Sergei Rachmaninoff cutting his birthday cake.
Tchaikovsky with his family.
Paul Hindemith at an early age playing with a toy carriage.
Edward Elgar smoking a cigarette with his dog Marco.
George Gershwin painting a picture of Arnold Schoenberg.
Béla Bartók looking trim.
John Corigliano having a beer with an eland.
Anton Webern bowling.
Richard Strauss playing cards.
Pierre Boulez and Simon Rattle chatting at a party in 1989.
Krzysztof Penderecki doing yardwork.
Giacomo Puccini at the Brooklyn Bridge.
Leonard Bernstein going for a swim in Israel.
Dmitri Shostakovich showing off his billiard skills.
Duke Ellington playing baseball.
Heitor Villa-Lobos playing billiards.
John Cage and Karlheinz Stockhausen flying a cartoon plane.
Igor Stravinsky having breakfast.
György Ligeti pouring water on Pierre-Laurent Aimard on a train.
Zoltán Kodály playing with his children.
Richard Wagner with his family.
Morton Feldman playing cards on a train.
Olivier Messiaen with his son, Pascal.
Samuel Barber smoking under a tree.
Theodor Adorno at the beach.
Giuseppe Verdi at a garden party surrounded by friends.
Jean Sibelius having an afternoon tea.
Arnold Schoenberg and Winfried Zillig rocking one piece bathing suits.
Arvo Pärt and Alfred Schnittke reenact their high school yearbook photos.
Very Very interesting! Thank you