In Dreaming and Thinking in Music, Bruce Adolphe harnesses his wide-ranging experiences as a composer and educator to tackle one of the more elusive questions in music composition: how to get from technical ability to creative creation. Unlike standard composition textbooks that focus on writing melody, harmony, counterpoint, and rhythm, Dreaming and Thinking in Music guides readers to explore the rarely discussed problems of how to get ideas, and how to follow up with the appropriate techniques to realize those ideas.

Exercises throughout the book prepare readers to receive, recognize, and seize moments of inspiration or musical vision through a variety of concepts to prompt imaginative musical thinking. Essays introduce and further explore topics such as hypnagogic dreams, improvisation, personal voice, composing based on lived experiences, and the influences of visual art, poetry, film, theater, and science. Adolphe's playful, erudite, yet fundamentally accessible approach serves as a guide for any composer, musician, or student interested in exploring their musical creativity from a non-technical viewpoint.