Music might be defined as a system of proportions in the service of a spiritual impulse

I have observed, too, that the people of the many countries that I have visited are showing an ever increasing interest in the classical and traditional music of their own cultures.

The rhythms of nature - the sounds of wind and water, the sounds of birds and insects - must inevitably find their analogues in music.

I believe that music surpasses even language in its power to mirror the innermost recesses of the human soul

I pick up the New York Times or Time and it's talking about the latest rock group, which I'm sure is exciting to some people, but it neglects a huge area of music.

The advent of electronically synthesized sound after World War II has unquestionably had enormous influence on music in general.

Although technical discussions are interesting to composers, I suspect that the truly magical and spiritual powers of music arise from deeper levels of our psyche.