In honour of the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Theosophical Society in New York city, we've decided to look into the cultural influence of Theosophy since then, with posts on novelists, composers, painters, poets, films, and pop culture. Perhaps the names here are not as familiar as with the list of novelists, but I think that all of the musical selections included here have something interesting to offer, not that the list does not include some historically significant composers.
Looking for composers with some kind of specific connection or influence, this list was formed simply based on music that I enjoyed, special mention should go the the following composers, most who are who probably more deserving to be on the list for historical reasons:
Peter Warlock, Kaikhosru Sorabji, Adolphe Biarent, Edward Elgar, Edgar Varese, Karlheinz Stockhausen, John Cage, Luigi Russolo, Granville Ransome Bantock, Torkom Saraydarian. Gustav Mahler, was connected with Anthroposophist conductor Bruno Walter, and Jean Sibelius once stayed at a Theosophists home for a week. In both cases, I felt that the Theosophical connections were not specific enough, unfortunately.
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| Marie Jaëll |
French composer, pianist, and educator, corresponded with Edouard Schuré and incorporated
holistic, spiritual and scientific perspectives in her writings on music theory
and education.
Danish composer took inspirations from Bruckner & Frank, especially after his own immersion in
theosophy, led him to creating series of large-scale autonomous works Fantasia
for Piano & Orchestra, Theosophical Ballet Artemis.
Child education activist Sarah Farwell was a relative of
Transcendentalist Ralph Waldo Emerson, a Vedantic student of Swami
Saradananda, and an admirer of Theosophy and New Thought philosophy. Her
son, Arthur Farwell was steeped in this visionary atmosphere as
a child, and would embrace it for the remainder of his life.
https://mattmarble.net/arthur-farwell
4- Alexander Scriabin (1871 –1915)
Russian composer and pianist, read Blavatsky. Although
scholars contest Scriabin's status as a theosophist, there is no denying that
he was a mystic, especially influenced by a range of Russian mystics and
spiritual thinkers, such as Solovyov and Berdyayev, both of whom Scriabin knew. making contact
with theosophists such as Jean Delville.
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| Gustav Holst |
British composer who studied
Sanskrit became friends with GRS Mead and Clifford Bax Theosophists. His famous
great success, The Planets, inspired by Theosophical astrologers such as Alan
Leo.
6- Cyril Scott (1879 –1970)
British composer, writer, poet, and occultist. An enthusiastic Neo-Theosophist who made use of various psychic practices, he wrote 400 musical compositions concertos, symphonies, operas; wrote 20
pamphlets and books on occult & natural health including Music: Its Secret
Influence Throughout the Ages.
7- John
Foulds (1880–1939)
British composer, travelled to India
in 1935 where, among other things, he collected folk music, composed pieces for traditional Indian instrument ensembles, and worked in radio and became
Director of All India Radio in Delhi in 1937. His wife Maud MacCarthy was a Theosophist.
8- Arnold Bax (1883 –1953)
British composer who associated with Yeats & Irish Literary Revival circle. His brother Clifford was a Theosophist.
 |
| Agustín Barrios |
9- Agustín Barrios Mangoré (1885 –1944)
Paraguayan guitarist and composer. "In spite of a severe religious education, my
primitive pantheism has pointed me in the direction of Theosophy, the most
human and rational of philosophic concepts."
10- Carlos Selzado (1885 –1961)
French-American harpist and composer, part of a California Theosophical music network with Edgard Varèse, Josef Hoffman, Leopold Stokowski and Dane Rudhyar.
https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA596318905&sid=googleScholar&v=2.1&it=r&linkaccess=abs&issn=0002869X&p=AONE&sw=w&userGroupName=anon%7Ec4a58d85&aty=open-web-entry
11- Rued
Langgaard (1893 –1952)
Danish composer. Rued Langgaard’s father,
Siegfried Langgaard, was an advocate of this orientation, and more than 1000
handwritten pages (!) survive from his hand under the heading »On the Harmony
of the Arts in the World Symphony«. Rued himself was strongly influenced,
 |
| William Grant Still |
12- Dane Rudhyar (1895 – 1985)
French-American Rudhyar
was a part of Theosphical scene near Krotona,
CA 1920-1930 with Stokowski, Ruth
Crawford-Seeger, Carlos Salzedo, Henry Cowell, Edgard Varese, Evangeline
Johnson.
https://sfciviccenter.blogspot.com/2010/10/rudhyar-in-retrospect-1-seed-man_02.html
13- William Grant Still (1895 – 1978)
Dean of African American Composers influenced
by Theosophy via music therapist Evelyn Benham-Bull (1897-1983) but was more of
a spiritualist. Symphony No.5 program notes here some seem to show Theosophical
influence
14- Henry Cowell (1897 – 1965)
One
of America's
most important and influential composers pioneer of world music
connected
with an independent SLO Cal Theosophy community.
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| Ruth Crawford Seeger |
A Silesia-born Austrian composer who was associated with Rudolf Steiner and Anthroposophy which is maybe half Theosophical, but included because of Atlantis, even though it's mainly nominal.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEapgzDdr0s
16-
Ruth Crawford Seeger (1901–1953)
American composer and folk music specialist. Step-mother of Pete Seeger. piano lessons with
Djane Lavoie-Herz, sparked interest in theosophy & Scriabin, met Dane
Rudhyar and Henry Cowell.
https://ca.toa.st/blogs/magazine/a-quiet-pioneer-composer-ruth-crawford-seeger-laura-barton
 |
| Elisabeth Lutyens |
A Theosophist from a Theosophical family, she grew up with Krishnamurti and became known as the queen of horror film composers.
Her background in Theosophy and Eastern mysticism is apparent in the
otherworldly atmosphere conjured up by her film scores and is also
evident in the music she created outside the studio system.
https://cinebeats.wordpress.com/2020/03/11/elisabeth-lutyens-the-horror-queen-of-film-composers/
18- Walter Kaufmann (1907 – 1984)
Bohemian-born American, he fled Germany
before WW2-studied Indian music with Theosophists John Foulds and his wife,
violinist/proto-ethnomusicologist Maud McCarthy. moved to Canada, then US - composed
All-India radio theme.
https://escholarship.org/content/qt3p7007z3/qt3p7007z3_noSplash_c0d3bd90782018cff296b77fb7d34cb0.pdf
19-
Alan Hovhaness (1911 –2000)
American-Armenian composer who bridged eastern & western music, recorded on small labels; with Seattle Orchestra in 1970s, was in top demand for 20 years, more recently recorded by Naxos; apparently into Roerich Theosophy.
20- Wayne Shorter (1933 –
2023)
American Nichiren
Buddhist, chosen for The All Seeing Eye, Atlantis album titles, importance of
Cyril Scott's writings for John Coltrane
For more information on Mystical, Esoteric, Theosophical composers, musicians and artists:
PS.
One could ask 'what about today's music? Are there any important Theosophical ties there?' Unfortunately, it is the Thelemans, with connections with the Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Led Zeppelin, that lead the field, as well the Mormons, with the Osmonds. However, Theosophy can be said to be represented with Shambalah by Three Dog Night, Seven Rays by Todd Rundgren, Fallen in Love by Gino Vannelli, (I’m Always Touched by Your) Presence, Dear by Blondie, Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In by the Fifth Dimension, Karma by Taylor Swift, as well as Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Judy Garland (of which I've counted at least thirty recordings by top jazz, country, pop and classical musicians, all very distinctive renditions). Actually, it is possible that Elvis Presley and John Lennon were reading Blavatsky around the same time in the 1970s. And, since Lennon apparently had access to Presley's private hotline, a little unlikely, but who's to say that there wasn't a Theosophical nexus of discussion between them?
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