The past is what makes the present coherent, and the past will remain horrible for exactly as long as we refuse to assess it honestly.

The moment we break faith with one another, the sea engulfs us and the light goes out.

It is a very grave matter to be forced to imitate a people for whom you know-which is the price of your performance and survival-you do not exist. It is hard to imitate a people whose existence appears, mainly, to be made tolerable by their bottomless gratitude that they are not, thank heaven, you.

All I know about music is that not many people ever really hear it.

I am certainly convinced that it is one of the greatest impulses of mankind to arrive at something higher than a natural state.

There is never time in the future in which we will work out our salvation. The challenge is in the moment; the time is always now.

The role of the artist is exactly the same as the role of the lover. If I love you, I have to make you conscious of the things you don’t see.