5 Expert Habits from The Odyssey composer Ludwig Göransson for Unlocking Your Creative Discipline

This is Expert Habits, a regular column in which thinkers, leaders, and other high performers talk about the habits and routines that help them live a better life.When Ludwig Göransson works on a creative project, he completely immerses himself in it . Take, as an example, his most recent assignment of composing the score for Christopher Nolan’s epic The Odyssey. Göransson went so deep into the musical history of ancient Greece, that he commissioned recreations of two long-lost instruments from that period (One of which, the aulos, is especially prominent in two of the film’s most melancholic moments.) He traveled to Southern Albania to collaborate with vocalists who sing traditional iso-polyphonic music . And, in the studio, he says he surrounded himself with 35 bronze gongs “in different shapes and styles.” “My approach is to build sounds from the ground up,” he told GQ in 2020, “so there's nothing that has specific associations.”The acclaimed composer—who has collaborated with everyone from Donald Glover to his former classmate Ryan Coogler—is now merely a Tony award away from being an EGOT. As The Odyssey continues to sell out IMAX theaters and make history at the box office, GQ spoke with Göransson about making space for creative experimentation, how to seek out collaboration, and the importance of a personal creative endeavorImmersion is keyLudwig Göransson: “When I create something, I like to go all in and fully into that world. And it could be really intense, especially today when you are a certain age and you have responsibilities. But finding that space where you feel completely free and the only responsibilities you have [are] to the music you're creating. “It's all about being curious and wanting to feel like you can always get better and develop. And I feel like I get to do that in all my projects.“While we were editing [The Odyssey], every Friday we had a little screening, internal screenings where Jennifer Lame, the editor, me, and Chris, and [producer] Emma Thomas watched the film and every Friday it changed a little bit. But seeing the movie so many times, you really start to get to know it in a way. It really becomes part of your life. And when you know it so well, you just feel if it's right or not because it all becomes an immersive experience.”Curiosity creates fruitful collaborations“For [The Odyssey] I was obsessed with this style of ancient singing called iso-polyphony. It's a choral tradition that stems back thousands of years. I found this amazing iso-polyphony group in Southern Albania. And I traveled there and I worked with these amazing musicians. [An experience like that can] take you out of your comfort zone and inspire you in a completely different way.“So first before I go to [collaborators], I need to have an idea of what I'm doing so I can give directions and so we can meet somewhere in the middle. And in that term, what I'm doing, I need to know what my songs are, what kind of tempo I'm having, what the melodies are, the harmonies. And so I have pretty fleshed out demo sketches before I start working with people. And then depending on who I'm working with, what I'm really fascinated with is: What is it that I'm looking for with this type of instrument or this person? Or for example, if it's an ancient Greek instrument or a Greek musician like the lyre player, what is it about that instrument—the lyre or the aulos— that makes [it] unique? And how can I use that unique part of the instrument as much as possible?“With James Blake, I've listened to his music for 15 years. For him, for example, I know how much he can do with his voice. He has the craziest range from top to bottom and anywhere he uses it's just instantly interesting. So being able to have him sing the melody, have him sing the “Odysseus” theme and then add harmonies on top of that.”Embrace variety“One of the first projects I ever did was a TV show called Community. That's the show that I met Donald Glover on. And on Community, Dan Harmon, the creator, he was very specific about understanding the importance of music. So every episode he wanted to do something different. ‘This needs to have this vibe, this need to have that vibe.’ And I had so much music to do every week, and every week it was different. We're recording it with orchestras. And so that was such a great school for me to learn.”Do creative projects for yourself, too“Every time I do take a little break, if it's six months or a year or something, I'm going back to try to finish my work and my [own] record. And I think that's important too. So you're not completely working, making something for other people. So you can still try to make something for yourself, which is, I think, very important.“Right now, I'm [simulating the experience of my childhood], where as a little kid I was just in the basement of the house I grew up in, surrounded by all the instruments, and the most exciting thing was just to go around different instruments and play them all myself and feel like I'm just solving a puzzle: like, okay, ‘here I'm going to play drums,’ ‘I'm going to play bass,’ ‘I'm going to do this and that.’”The work should bring you joy“If you're sitting and being creative and suddenly find yourself not enjoying what you're doing, just stop for a second and do something else. It's important that anytime [I’m working], I feel like I'm enjoying it. Because I get to work on projects that are so inspiring, I want to feel inspired the whole time.”