Writing

[Hardbopjazz]

How many musicians here write music they hear in their sleep? I always have melodies come to me while I'm sleeping. The hard part then, is getting up and writing down melodies down so I don't forget them by morning.

Anyone else have music come to them in their sleep?

[Herb]

Not me, heck, I can't even write when I'm awake. It's all I can do to play somebody else's music!

[Alexander]

There's a great scene in the "Great Jazz Day" (or whatever) documentary in which Benny Golson is talking to Horace Silver about this very issue. Golson says that whenever he dreams a melody, he always intends to remember it and use it, but that he always forgets it in the morning. Well, one time he got up and wrote it down, intending to develop it the next day. When he wakes up, he runs to his horn (or piano, whatever he writes on) and plays it. As he plays he realizes that the tune sound familiar...

It's the verse to "Stardust!"

[casanovas347]

i'm not a big writer.....but i learn to play when i sleep...sound strange....but i hear myself playin sometimes in my dreams.....melodies and other stuff...sometimes i can memorize it, wake up and play...some stuff need months to catch.....but very strange is: i got the same dream over months ...until i catch em....

[maren]

There's a great scene in the "Great Jazz Day" (or whatever) documentary in which Benny Golson is talking to Horace Silver about this very issue. Golson says that whenever he dreams a melody, he always intends to remember it and use it, but that he always forgets it in the morning. Well, one time he got up and wrote it down, intending to develop it the next day. When he wakes up, he runs to his horn (or piano, whatever he writes on) and plays it. As he plays he realizes that the tune sound familiar...

It's the verse to "Stardust!"

That's the first thing I thought of when I read the title of this thread? ("A Great Day in Harlem", right?)

That story cracked me up!

I hear music in my sleep, too... When I'm actually deeply asleep and dreaming, it's usually a clear single-line melody, which I can remember when I wake up. But sometimes, when I'm in that falling-asleep state -- or that not-sleeping-well-half-awake state -- it's really like an aural hallucination, and it's VERY complex, kind of free-jazz-meets-20th-century-symphony -- very full sound -- half the time it's like it's just playing, and then I get the sense that I can shape it -- "compose" the phrases, "conduct" the dynamics. The music is exciting but the feeling is weird -- seems to coincide with being a little sick -- fever from the flu or something -- or being really "wired" for some reason.

Then I've also had the experience of literally talking with someone, like on the phone before I fall asleep, about a tune we're both trying to remember -- and then waking up with the melody in my head.