Once finalized, a pen was historically utilized to lend the work some permanence. With the staves drawn, m any talented artists would then use a pencil which has long been the preferred starting point for putting notes onto paper due to the extensive revision that usually occurs with the creative process.
Famed Russian composer Igor Stravinsky actually improved upon this concept by inventing the Stravigor, a device made of rollers that would allow him to produce staves quickly and easily. Bottom row: Gustav Mahler and Igor Stravinskyīefore the mass production of staff paper, composers would use single or double-staff rastrums, dipped in ink, and drug across the paper to create staffs. Top row: Richard Wagner, Darius Milhaud, and Dmitri Shostakovich. The music nib was an invention born out of necessity at a time when alternatives were limited.įamous composers who are known to have used fountain pens. It may surprise you to learn that in the time before the rise of ballpoints and computers, fountain pens were not always the best or even preferred choice for such work.
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Several authorities advocate learning to handwrite scores as it can facilitate creativity, improve aural skills, and allows one to better understand the strengths and limitations of the various computer software platforms out there. Proficiency at musical notation takes a tremendous amount of practice, analogous to how an elementary school child might learn to write their letters. In the days before computers, writing music by hand was indeed an art form. Whereas the composer is responsible for the overall vision of a piece and musicians are responsible for bringing that vision to life, the music engraver has traditionally spanned the gap between the two by translating the composer’s vision in a concise and accurate manner. Handwritten scores or music manuscripts are less common these days and copy work (also known as music engraving) is all but a lost art.
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Today, many of the professional scores are done via computer programs such as Sibelius or Finale. I can’t work with a pencil.” Famed twentieth century symphonist Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) also eschewed the pencil, preferring to compose much of his music with a fountain pen. The story goes that he pointed to his fountain pen and stated, “There, that’s my inspiration. French composer Darius Milhaud (1892-1974), a member of “The Group of Six,” was once asked what inspired him to compose. Amongst them are the likes of Richard Wagner (1813-1883), Gustav Mahler (1860-1911), and Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971). Many composers have utilized fountain pens in the composition of their masterpieces. The barrel of the pen is engraved with the Chinese characters ‘守拙’ likely representing a Japanese name Of course, just for a bit of added drama, the pen got lost in the mail for a short time while on its way to me but all’s well that ends well.Ī 400NN Tortoiseshell Brown equipped with a music nib. I had to wait six days for that auction to conclude and fight hard during the last thirty minutes of bidding but, in the end, I prevailed which is great for me and good for you because it allows me to give you an up close and personal look at this seldom seen specialty nib. I could hardly believe my eyes but was almost certain that I was looking at one of Pelikan’s fabled music nibs. It had two slits and three tines with the pre-1954 Pelikan lettering below. Thank you for letting me get that out of my system. It had a nib like something from another world just, you know, stuck in, among the 140s and M800s.
They didn’t have anything unusual there that day so I was just about to, ya know, browse on by, when suddenly, and without warning, there was this strange Tortoiseshell Brown 400NN. ” With your leave So there I was, browsing around Yahoo! Auctions in Japan one day and I passed by a bunch of listings where I sometimes find weird and exotic pens ’cause you know that Pelikans are my hobby. For some reason, I cannot think of telling the story of how I came across this nib without the soundtrack to Frank Oz’s 1986 big screen adaptation of “Little Shop Of Horrors” running through my mind, specifically set to the tune “ Da-Doo. What I’m alluding to is the Pelikan music nib or musikfeder in its native tongue. Today we take a look at something special, something not often seen, a rarity even amongst a brand that has created its fair share of unique and uncommon goods over nearly a century of pen making. I must implore you at the outset to forgive my jubilation over this post and ask that you indulge my exuberance.