I had never thought about what it might mean to be deaf, to be deprived of language, or to have a remarkable language (and community and culture) of oneโs own. Up to this point, I had mostly thought and written about the problems of individualsโhere I was to encounter an entire community.
Oliver SacksI regard music therapy as a tool of great power in many neurological disorders -- Parkinson's and Alzheimer's -- because of its unique capacity to organize or reorganize cerebral function when it has been damaged.
Oliver SacksMusic, uniquely among the arts, is both completely abstract and profoundly emotional. It has no power to represent anything particular or external, but it has a unique power to express inner states or feelings. Music can pierce the heart directly; it needs no mediation.
Oliver SacksI feel a sudden clear focus and perspective. There is no time for anything inessential.
Oliver Sacks