Friedrich Nietzsche [CF:PL1054]

Music was always an important aspect of Friedrich Nietzsche’s life. At the age of seventeen, Nietzsche obtained the vocal score of Richard Wagner’s music drama “Tristan und Isolde” and was immediately mesmerized by the music. Seven years later, he met Wagner for the first time, and an intimate and mutually inspiring relationship developed that would influence and define every aspect of his personal and professional life from that point. This collection, edited and compiled by Nicholas Hopkins, PhD in Music Theory and Composition, features 19 pieces for piano solo and piano four hands that Nietzsche composed between the years 1857 and 1874. The pieces offer a unique glimpse of a highly influential philosopher whose musical achievements have remained largely overlooked, even unknown. Also included is a scholarly essay by Hopkins that discusses Nietzsche’s unique way of reconciling the two very different disciplines of philosophy and music, and analyzes his development as a composer.