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Why are all composers overweight?

Hi

I have to find some pictures of famous composers throughout the eras. So far I have seen all overweight ones such as Bach, Handel, Beethoven (etc). The only thin one I have found is Vivaldi :frown:

Why do composers, especially German ones, seem to be overweight?

Reply 1

Sephirona

They ate a lot of goose meat.

Reply 2

shamrock92

Not only him: Mozart? Shostakovich? Ravel?

Reply 3

clevergirl

shamrock92

Not only him: Mozart? Shostakovich? Ravel?

Ok it seems to be most Baroque ones :frown:

Reply 4

shamrock92

clevergirl

Ok it seems to be most Baroque ones :frown:

Wha? Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich and Ravel? They're not baroque at all!

There are others: Telemann, Gluck , Haydn, Albinoni, Paganini, Schubert, Liszt, Wagner, Tchaikovsky, Puccini, Elgar . . .

(Related: Did you know Handel was so fat he used to order two meals at restaurants, and they'd never bring them out to him thinking the second meal was for a friend. He was a real fatso.)

Reply 5

MSB

Musical inventiveness is directly proportional to body fat percentage.

Reply 6

Rubix

Because they sit around all day composing music?

A bit obvious really.

Reply 7

watermelon sugar

shamrock92

(Related: Did you know Handel was so fat he used to order two meals at restaurants, and they'd never bring them out to him thinking the second meal was for a friend. He was a real fatso.)

i didn't know they even had restaurants in them days :o:

i think op jus stumbled on lots of the fatties, i always thought of composers as being a bit scrawny and malnourished looking

Reply 8

shamrock92

watermelon sugar

i didn't know they even had restaurants in them days :o:

i think op jus stumbled on lots of the fatties, i always thought of composers as being a bit scrawny and malnourished looking

The tortured geniuses often were slim, whereas the more famous composers tended to get lavishly accommodated by the government at the time.

Reply 9

Roobagnall

shamrock92

The tortured geniuses often were slim, whereas the more famous composers tended to get lavishly accommodated by the government at the time.

No. They really wernt.

Just thinking of 15 great composers from all styles i can think of 4 that are porkers where as i could name 25 skinny composers who i would class as very very good.

Reply 10

shamrock92

Roobagnall

No. They really wernt.

Just thinking of 15 great composers from all styles i can think of 4 that are porkers where as i could name 25 skinny composers who i would class as very very good.

. . . I never said that most composers were fat. In fact, if you look at my earlier post, I listed many who weren't. So what's your point?

Reply 11

deadgenius

The rich ones were all fat. It was part of the high-society lifestyle that so many of them lived in. But if they weren't rich, they were probably in poverty and really skinny. There are, of course, exceptions.

Adds character.

shamrock92

. . . I never said that most composers were fat. In fact, if you look at my earlier post, I listed many who weren't. So what's your point?

"whereas the more famous composers tended to get lavishly accommodated by the government at the time."

That is what im objecting to.

Composers were generaly the most deprived bunch of the lot.

Reply 14

shamrock92

Roobagnall

"whereas the more famous composers tended to get lavishly accommodated by the government at the time."

That is what im objecting to.

Composers were generaly the most deprived bunch of the lot.

Ah right. Perhaps I'm wrong, but that's not what I've heard. Certainly the classical ones were apparently well-treated, when run-of-the-mill classical music was in its hayday. Haydn, for example, made riches as an official composer whilst Mozart struggled.

Reply 15

clevergirl

Roobagnall

"whereas the more famous composers tended to get lavishly accommodated by the government at the time."

That is what im objecting to.

Composers were generaly the most deprived bunch of the lot.

Baroque composers were basically classed as slaves although they performed in Royal courts and palaces. They often used to eat and sleep with the servants because most people classed them as servants who provide a source of entertainment. In the classical era, if you were wealthy then you were practically doing OK. You would perform in opera and people would pay to come and see you play. The Romantic era was all about grandeur and opulence amongst great mansions and theatres. If your work was spotted ad approved, then you would get paid and recruited, often by an aristocratic person or even a music school.
It is only now that we look back and reflect upon the true eminence of their work.