Composers Stepping Out

of their comfort zones

My extensive research has turned up some rarities by some world-class composers.
It seems that at times they experimented with styles other than those for which they were known.

Frédéric Chopin

Perhaps encouraged by his relationship with George Sand, Chopin became enamored of
Movie Musicals, leading to him write the obscure "Hollywood Nocturne," which he
loved performing while wearing the traditional top hat, white tie, and tails.

Franz Schubert

Schubert apparently kept his love of baseball mostly to himself, but very short quotes
from "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" worked their way into several of his compositions,
for example, the note sequence G-F-E in the violin II part of the "Trout Quintet."

George Frideric Händel

Despite the time required to compose his many works in so many genres, Handel vacationed
in Hawai'i every chance he got. Although he never met the equally prolific songwriter
Lili'uokalani, she inspired him to feature a ukulele solo in his "Pacific Water Music."

Johannes Brahms

Brahms was already quite wealthy before getting into the ice cream business.
Despite his Lutheran background, he felt stylish when wearing a yamaka. He wrote
"Hungarian Dance No.22" based on "Hine Ma Tov," but it was removed by the Nazis.

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Ignored by most musicologists and historians, Tchaikovsky's collection
of pieces written for Middle-Eastern snake charmers is fairly extensive.
This oversight might be due to the pervasive Russian nationalism of his time.

~ FURTHER READING ~

Just kidding.