Symphony of Secrets

While the main focus of Symphony of Secrets is music, it also fits into the mystery genre, and its dual plotlines share characteristics with several other prominent fictional books and movies that deal with the creation of music. For example, the plotline in which Delaney records Josephine’s music can be compared to David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas, in which Robert Frobisher works as an amanuensis, transcribing music written by the composer Vyvyan Ayrs, while composing his own music in his free time. Frobisher’s Cloud Atlas Sextet can be compared to Josephine’s opera Red in that both pieces of music are written by marginalized individuals and stolen by more privileged people. Vyvyan, who steals Frobisher’s music, is very similar to Delaney. Also, both composers die tragically—Josephine is murdered by Delaney, and Frobisher dies by suicide. Furthermore, both Cloud Atlas and Symphony of Secrets include multiple time periods and perspectives.

Other examples of fictional texts about musicians include Doctor Faustus by Thomas Mann, Sonata Mulattica by Rita Dove, and the play “Amadeus” by Peter Shaffer. “Amadeus”—which focuses on key interactions between Mozart and his rival, Antonio Salieri—was adapted for the screen, as was Cloud Atlas. Symphony of Secrets can also be compared to the movie and book Possession by A.S. Byatt. While Possession is not about music, it does feature characters who unearth old documents and solve a mystery. The letters written by the Victorian poets Randolph Henry Ash and Christabel LaMotte in Possession can be compared to Josephine’s Compendium in Symphony of Secrets. Possession also operates in two different time periods, just like Slocumb’s novel. Thus, while the structure and premise of Symphony of Secrets reflect a myriad of details shared by other similar stories, Slocumb’s focus on highlighting the blatantly racist (and multigenerational) exploitation of Josephine’s musical genius draws attention to the many ways in which the unique creations of marginalized people are suborned and exploited by those with greater societal power.