Imaginary

Fictional Narratives

Novels:

• Amy Tan, The Valley of Amazement: A Novel (Ecco/HarperCollins Publishers, 2013): “Here are strong women struggling to survive all that life has to throw at them, created by a writer skilled at evoking the roil of emotions and mad exploits they experience when they follow their hearts.”

From the dark side, guilt:

• James Sallis, Sarah Jane: A Novel (Soho Crime, 2019): “Guilt about a righteous but unlawful killing hangs over Sarah Jane, driving both her self-destructive behavior and her acts of atonement.”

From the dark side, insecurity:

• Cynthia Ozick, Antiquities: A Novella (Knopf, 2021): “. . . the narrative is shot through with the distinctive self-importance of the insecure.”

Poetry

Music: Composers, artists, and major works

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Horn Concerti display Mozart’s ebullience, each in a major key, and feature a forward horn soloist. “The peculiarities of the instrument (natural horn) as well as its limitations determine the character of the melodic lines and the structure, which is relatively simple. However, Mozart developed them comfortably and freely within the technical limitations of the natural horn. The concertos composed for horn and orchestra, were dedicated to Joseph Ignaz Leitgeb (1732-1811) horn player at the court of Salzburg and a great friend to the whole Mozart family.” Mozart appears to have had fun with the horn player for whom he composed the works – a “brass-blowing cheesemonger”. Excellent recordings of all four concerti are by hornists Brain in 1953, Tuckwell in the early 1960s, Baumann in 1974 (1 & 2), (3 & 4), Thompson in 1998, Jiang in 2007, Allegrini in 2010, Montgomery (natural horn) in 2013, Marsolais in 2017, Ess in 2018, and Frank-Gemmill in 2024.

• No. 1 in D major, K. 412 (unfinished) (approx. 9’): “. . . Mozart would tease Leutgeb mercilessly, even in the music as he wrote comments in the score: 'For you, Mr. Ass,' 'come on, quick, get on with it,' 'a sheep could trill like that,' 'are you finished yet?'”
• No. 2 in E-flat major, K. 417 (1783) (approx. 13-14’): The concerto is “operatic, bouncy, jolly, but expressive and virtuosic, with poise and a hunting-song-like chase, especially toward the end.”
• No. 3 in E-flat major, K. 447 (1787) (approx. 14-16’): “While it certainly has its charms, no questions asked, it is in my mind unquestionably inferior to the delightful, superbly written K. 417 from a few days ago.”
• No. 4 in E-flat major, K. 495 (1786) (approx. 16’): “Composed for virtuoso horn player Joseph Leutgeb, Mozart’s Fourth Horn Concerto is one his most colourful. So colourful that Mozart actually penned the score in red, green, blue and black ink!” Some people speculate that he may have been playing with Leutgeb, trying to make the playing of a horn without valves all the more difficult. 

Perhaps because the violin has strings and can be finely tuned, Mozart’s Violin Concerti are relatively serious, displaying less of the jocularity that characterizes his horn concerti. Still, this is Mozart: all five violin concerti are in a major key. Though widely considered to be less weighty than later violin concertos, such as Beethoven’s, each of Mozart’s violin concertos displays his certainty about himself as a composer and musician. Mozart composed them when he was 18-19 years old: self-confidence, which can be a hallmark of youth, persisted in Mozart’s case, throughout his too-brief life, and was augmented by further development of his genius. Top recordings of all five concerti are by Grumiaux (Davis/Leppard) in 1962, Perlmam (Levine) in 1983, Standage (Hogwood) in 1990, Carmignola (Abbado) in 2007, Nordio (Ferri) in 2017, Faust (Antonini) in 2017, Tetzlaff (Paavo Järvi ) in 2020, Shaham (McGegan) in 2022, Dego (Norrington) [Nos. 3 & 4 (2021); Nos. 1, 2, & 5 (2022)], and Capuçon (2023).

• No. 1 in B-flat major, K. 207 (1773) (approx. 19-21’): “'You are not quite aware yourself of what an excellent violinist you are, when you gather up all your strength and play with self-confidence, verve, and fire,' Leopold wrote to his son. . . His own first effort in the genre clearly shows those influences”
• No. 2 in D major, K. 211 (1775) (approx. 19-24’) “is at once a more stately and milder piece: the composer would seem to be reflecting on the galant style encountered during his childhood travels in France, but with some ‘modern’ effects, such as the chromatic touches in the opening movement that render it more 'advanced' than its predecessor.”
• No. 3 in G major, K. 216 (1775) (approx. 22-28’) “shows a marked progression from the first two (Mozart violin concerti). It is freer in form and more self-assured, employing the orchestra as a true partner to the soloist, rather than a pale accompaniment.”
• No. 4 in D major, K. 218 (1775) (approx. 23-25’): “After a first movement in the eighteenth century's most charm‑filled military manner comes an andante that is the very essence of yielding tenderness and grace.” “. . . what other composer in 1775 would have had the temerity to handle the first entry of the violin as he did?”
• No. 5 in A major, K. 219, “Turkish” (1775) (approx. 28-31’): “Especially in his Violin Concerto No. 5 in A, K. 219, Mozart demonstrates great imagination in his experimentation with fluctuating tempos and diverse meters within single movements. Such freedom in his handling of material expresses not only an originality of form, but also Mozart’s knowledge and command of both the Italian and French styles, a demonstration of his cosmopolitanism at the age of 19!” 

Jazz trumpeter Clifford Brown “was a principal figure in the hard-bop idiom”, despite his tragic death in an automobile accident at the age of 25 years. Every great musician displays self-confidence; Brownie also lived it. “In an age when many musicians were experimenting with drugs, Brownie was clean. Professionally he was admired for his technique, his emotional, warm delivery, and his sense of rhythm. But it was his personality and his kindness that elevated his stature beyond that of just an intensely admired musician. Fellow trumpeter Art Farmer called him a 'Sweet Cat.'” He recorded many albums, especially for one who died so young. 

Though underappreciated, Ruth Gipps composed music that is “characterful, playful and unashamedly Romantic”. Hers is the work of “a composer confident in handling her attractive material with impressive economy”. She composed her Oboe Concerto, Op. 20 (1941) (approx. 22’) when she was only 20 years old. It exhibits the same confidence as do her more mature works, including the entrancing Symphony No. 3, Op. 57 (1965) (approx. 37-41’), and Symphony No. 4, Op. 61 (1972) (approx. 32-34’). Reflecting a newfound appreciation for this excellent composer, albums have been recorded recently, of her chamber music for clarinet (2021) (67’), piano and chamber music (2021) (52’), and “Winds of Change” (chamber music) (2022) (77’). Like self-confidence itself, her works are like a breath of fresh air. 

Other compositions evoking self-confidence:

• Antonin Dvořák, Symphony No. 5 in F Major, Op. 76, B. 54 (1875) (approx. 39-42’): “. . . the F-major Symphony immediately announces itself, with a liquid song for the clarinets, as something new: lighter in sonority, more relaxed – a pastoral symphony as opposed to the heroic pretensions of its predecessor.” “The confidence apparent in Symphony No. 5 feels not borrowed, but earned, and the advances Dvořák made in structural clarity, thematic cohesion and tonal invention marked the beginning of a new personal era for the composer.”
• Ludwig van Beethoven, Piano Sonata No. 11 in B-flat major, Op. 22, "Grand" (1800) (approx. 23-27’), “closes out this high-Classic phase of Beethoven’s sonata development on a note of absolute confidence in his mastery of the form.”
• Pasquale Pericoli, Cello Sonatas (1752-1757) (approx. 58’)
• Johannes Brahms, Horn Trio in E-Flat Major, Op. 40 (1865) (approx. 29-31’), ”is at once nostalgic and strangely modern, masking a rough earthiness with a Romantic warmth while also shedding conventions of form and instrumentation.”
• Carl Maria von Weber, Piano Sonata No. 1 in C Major, Op. 24, J138 (1812) (approx. 21-17’); Piano Sonata No. 2 in A-flat Major, Op. 39, J199 (1816) (approx. 29-33’); Piano Sonata No. 3 in D minor, Op. 49, J206 (1816) (approx. 21-28’); Piano Sonata No. 4 in E minor, Op. 70, J287 (1822) (approx. 26-28’). “Weber’s extraordinary piano writing, its figuration and texture, has at times a quasi orchestral colour that even anticipates Liszt. His virtuosity as a player is evident in all four of these works . . .”
• Filippo Sauli, 6 Partitas for Solo Mandolin () (approx. 46’) 
• Jean Cras, Cello Sonata, “The Flesh” (1901) (approx. 31’): “Believing that man's journey through life to be a spiritual process, the fervently religious composer subtitled the . . . cello sonata La Chair ("The Flesh"). . . . Jean Cras' Sonate pour violoncelle et piano . . . represents not only Cras' first major multi-movement work, but also his first foray into cyclical composition.”

Albums:

• Cannonball Adderley, “Somethin’ Else” (1958) (39’) “is calm and uncluttered and direct, each line and phrase contributing something crucial to the whole.”
• Dave Holland, “Another Land” (2021) (68’) “is yet another keeper from the indefatigable English bassist.”
• Tommy Flanagan, “Solo Piano” (2011) (47’): comforting, gentle riffs on jazz piano
• René Lacaille, “Ti galé” (2025) (25’)
• Yusef Lateef, “Eastern Sounds” (1961) (40’): “There is an air of reflective, unhurried calm about the disc, resulting from the quiet assurance of Lateef’s playing and from the unity of his musical conception. His is a fully realized, wholly personal approach, an effective synthesis of a variety of stylistic sources, not the least of which is the Middle Eastern one, which dominates here, as the title might indicate.”

With tongue in cheek, Fred Frith, is a musical purveyor of personal doubts, fears, anxieties and angst, as illustrated by his “BlaBla Bio”. He says: “The history of my playing is a gradual demolition of the guitar over a period of about 15 years.” His self-effacement and willingness “to approach the guitar in unconventional ways in pursuit of new sounds and unusual tonal colors”, reflect deep and secure self-confidence. He “boasts” an extensive playlist, and has performed live in Poland in 2000 (65’), at Festival Météo in 2015 (52’), in Mexico City in 2007 (63’), and at the Torino Jazz festival in 2019 (57’).

Music: songs and other short pieces

• Katy Perry, “Roar” (lyrics)
• Demi Lovato, “Confident” (lyrics)

On the dark side:

• Janis Ian, “At Seventeen” (lyrics)

Visual Arts

• Frida Kahlo, Self-Portrait with a Necklace (1933)
• Valentin Serov, Self-Portrait
• Orest Kiprensky, Self-Portrait (1828)
• Jean-Honoré Fragonard, Marie-Madeleine Guimard, Dancer (c. 1769)
• Jean-Honoré Fragonard, Portrait of a Young Artist (The Actor) (c. 1769)
• Jean-Honoré Fragonard, Portrait of Monsieur de la Breteche (1769)

Film and Stage

• Funny Girl, a dramatizationof Fanny Brice’s life and work, the film was a star vehicle for Barbra Streisand, herself a study in self-confidence
• The Tender Trap, aboutthe allure of a woman’s self-confidence
• Eighth Grade: middle school had gone poorly for Kayla but then she takes a few risks, opens herself and blossoms.