I pretty much agree with this way of understanding music and the world: A handful of phrases and sentences of John Cage, one of the most important personalities of the last century.
“There is no such thing as an empty space or an empty time. There is always something to see, something to hear. In fact, try as we may to make a silence, we cannot.”
“The first question I ask myself when something doesn’t seem to be beautiful is why do I think it’s not beautiful. And very shortly you discover that there is no reason.”
“The emotions – love, mirth, the heroic, wonder, tranquility, fear, anger, sorrow, disgust – are in the audience.”
“It’s useless to play lullabies for those who cannot sleep.”
“College: two hundred people reading the same book. An obvious mistake. Two hundred people can read two hundred books.”
“Get yourself out of whatever cage you find yourself in.”
