I Don't Compose. I Assemble Materials.

You Compose Because You Want To Somehow Summarize In Some Permanent Form Your Most Basic Feelings About Being Alive, To Set Down Some Sort Of Permanent Statement About The Way It Feels To Live Now, Today.

For Me, The Most Important Thing Is The Element Of Chance That Is Built Into A Live Performance. The Very Great Drawback Of Recorded Sound Is The Fact That It Is Always The Same. No Matter How Wonderful A Recording Is, I Know That I Couldn't Live With It--even Of My Own Music--with The Same Nuances Forever.

A Melody Is Not Merely Something You Can Hum.

This Whole Problem Can Be Stated Quite Simply By Asking, “is There A Meaning To Music?” My Answer To That Would Be, “yes.” And “can You State In So Many Words What The Meaning Is?” My Answer To That Would Be, “no.”

I Don't Compose. I Assemble Materials.