List of Aaron Copland Quotes

Mozart Tapped The Source From Which All Music Flows, Expressing Himself With A Spontaneity And Refinement And Breathtaking Rightness.

You May Feel Depressed, But It Can't Be So Depressing That You Can't Move. No, I Would Say That People Create In Moments When They Are Elated About Expressing Their Depression!

I Hope My Recordings Of My Own Works Won't Inhibit Other People's Performances. The Brutal Fact Is That One Doesn't Always Get The Exact Tempo One Wants, Although One Improves With Experience.

Arthur V. Berger Commenting On The Music Of Aaron Copland: Here Is At Last An American That We May Place Unapologetically Beside The Great Recognized Creative Figures Of Any Other Country.

The Melody Is Generally What The Piece Is All About.

A Melody Is Not Merely Something You Can Hum.

A Great Symphony Is A Man-made Mississippi Down Which We Irresistibly Flow From The Instant Of Our Leave-taking To A Long Forseen Destination.

If One Were Asked To Name One Musician Who Came Closest To Composing Without Human Flaw, I Suppose General Consensus Would Choose Johann Sebastian Bach.

I Adore Extravagance But I Abhor Waste.

When I Speak Of The Gifted Listener, I Am Thinking Of The Nonmusician Primarily, Of The Listener Who Intends To Retain His Amateur Status. It Is The Thought Of Just Such A Listener That Excites The Composer In Me.

If A Literary Man Puts Together Two Words About Music, One Of Them Will Be Wrong.

Composers Tend To Assume That Everyone Loves Music. Surprisingly Enough, Everyone Doesn’t.