Composers Love To Eat

"If music be the food of love, play on." William Shakespeare

As we sit, write, blog, or create something, that sudden urge hits us, and we snack on something and perhaps have a glass of wine. The food fortifies us, and the wine inspires. It is interesting to know what the greatest composers in the world chose to indulge in.

Frédéric Chopin

This composer enjoyed a Polish dish that consisted of thin slices of chopped beef stuffed with eggs and vegetables known as zrazy. Lodging in a poor part of Vienna, Chopin recorded his delight when he and a friend were invited to eat at the villa of Dr. Johann Malfatti. The good doctor had made sure there was Polish food served, namely zrazy.

George Frideric Handel

George Frideric Handel was a German-British Baroque composer who became well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto gross, and organ concertos.One time a royal duke gifted the composer with a bottle of fine port and some pheasant. Handle was not able to enjoy his treats, as his friend Anne Dewes was bringing some of his admirers to supper. The evening the composer excused himself from the supper, saying that he had to leave the party since he had just had some divine inspiration and had to write it down. They excused him but became curious. One member of the party peeked into the keyhole of the room that Handel had retreated into and saw him enjoying the port he had received as a gift.

Giacomo Puccini

The composer is now widely considered the ‘heir’ of Verdi; Puccini is known as one of the great composers of Italian opera. While his early work is traditional, late-19th-century Romantic Italian opera, Puccini became better known for writing in the verismo style—Italian for ‘realism.’ He formed the Club Boheme, where he cooked pasta with eels or roasted pheasants and partridges that he shot at lakeside.

Giachino Rossini

Gioachino Rossini was an Italian composer who achieved fame through his 39 operas.His love of music also inspired him to write songs, chamber music, and pieces for the piano and even some sacred music. He had a great love of food and had dishes named after him, such as Tournedos Rossini and Eggs Rossini. His favorite of all foods was turkey stuffed with truffles.

Jean Sibelius

Jean Sibelius was a Finnish composer and violinist of the late Romantic and early modern periods. He became Finland's greatest composer, and his music is often said to have helped Finland develop a national identity during the country's struggle for independence.

Sibelius was part of a hard-drinking and living crowd in the capital city of Finland, Helsinki. After going through an operation for throat cancer once he revived, Sibelius made sure that a box of cigars would be nearby. Another time, preparing for a concert in Gothenburg, his wife, Aino, noticed her husband was missing. She found him at a nearby cafe enjoying champagne and oysters. After returning to the concert, Aino thought her husband was fine to begin the concert. Suddenly, as the Oceanides overture began he stopped the orchestra and began giving them notes. He thought he was at rehearsal, not actually at the concert.

Igor Stravinsky

Igor Stravinsky was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Later on he also had French and American citizenships. He is considered to be one of the most important and influential composers of the 20th century. Stravinsky and composer Rachmaninov did not meet in their homeland but had the chance to dine together in the US state of California in the 1940s. During that time Rachmaninov decided he wanted to be friends with Stravinsky, and when he heard that his fellow composer had a great love for honey, he knew what he had to do. So one night as Stravinsky went to bed having worked late on the orchestral suite for Four Norwegian Moods, he was surprised to be woken during the night. Rachmaninov came to his bedside to present him with a very large jar of natural honey.