The Sound of the Place: A Personal Tour of Britain’s Most Inspiring Music

Musicians have always been inspired by the places in which they live. Benjamin Britten will always be identified with the Suffolk coastland; Edward Elgar with the rolling hills of Worcestershire. When composer Luke Ottevanger found that his ability to write music had deserted him, he sent himself on a series of therapeutic musical journeys, to explore how the landscapes of Britain had liberated musicians in the past. In this thoughtful account of his self-imposed quest, he investigates the myths and legends lying behind the music of nearly thirty composers, and weaves together descriptions of the genesis and history of almost seventy musical pieces with his own accounts of the places he discovered on his travels--and truths about himself.

Luke Ottevanger is a music teacher and composer, and lives in North Essex with his wife. Born in 1975 he was brought up in London and Leicestershire before going on to study Music at King’s College, Cambridge University. Captivated by music since childhood he first began to create pieces of his own at an early age, and composition soon became a vital part of his life, although one he mostly kept to himself.