The retrospective glance is a relatively easy gesture for us to make.

One very important aspect of our contemporary musical culture - some might say the supremely important aspect - is its extension in the historical and geographical senses to a degree unknown in the past.

Writing seems to be more difficult as you move through the years.

The future will be the child of the past and the present, even if a rebellious child.

I frequently hear our present period described as uncertain, confused, chaotic.

Although technical discussions are interesting to composers, I suspect that the truly magical and spiritual powers of music arise from deeper levels of our psyche.

Most of my influences are turn-of-the-century.

The development of new instrumental and vocal idioms has been one of the remarkable phenomena of recent music.

Perhaps two million years ago the creatures of a planet in some remote galaxy faced a musical crisis similar to that which we earthly composers face today.

It is easy to write unthinking music.

I am certain that most composers today would consider today's music to be rich, not to say confusing, in its enormous diversity of styles, technical procedures, and systems of esthetics.

I pick up the New York Times or Time and it's talking about the latest rock group, which I'm sure is exciting to some people, but it neglects a huge area of music.

Nonetheless, I sense that it will be the task of the future to somehow synthesize the sheer diversity of our present resources into a more organic and well-ordered procedure.

I have observed, too, that the people of the many countries that I have visited are showing an ever increasing interest in the classical and traditional music of their own cultures.

If we look at music history closely, it is not difficult to isolate certain elements of great potency which were to nourish the art of music for decades, if not centuries.

I think we're in a very low point of music right now.

In a broader sense, the rhythms of nature, large and small - the sounds of wind and water, the sounds of birds and insects - must inevitably find their analogues in music.

The retrospective glance is a relatively easy gesture for us to make.

The advent of electronically synthesized sound after World War II has unquestionably had enormous influence on music in general.

I must confess, my Spanish is not so good - except I read a little, so I started with the English but then determined that it would have to be in Spanish.

As interesting as that music can occasionally be, I don't think it really replaces the other.

This is not a happy time for this kind of music in this country.

I am optimistic about the future of music.

Unquestionably, our contemporary world of music is far richer, in a sense, than earlier periods, due to the historical and geographical extensions of culture to which I have referred.

Perhaps of all the most basic elements of music, rhythm most directly affects our central nervous system.

Perhaps many of the perplexing problems of the new music could be put into a new light if we were to reintroduce the ancient idea of music being a reflection of nature.

The rhythms of nature - the sounds of wind and water, the sounds of birds and insects - must inevitably find their analogues in music.

No one bothered reading the books and understanding - and again, I'm not being high-falutin' about it - but I think our books are great literature with great metaphors of real life dealing with fears and hopes.

Love may be harder to find in some people, but when they do love you know it must be something marvelous.

The work goes on the cause endures the hope still lives and the dreams shall never die.

OK, I've been very wild, but I've never really been the sort of person who goes that crazy!

If by my life or death I can protect you I will.

I feel like I've done a bunch of period stuff and then a bunch of romantic comedies.

Working your core always, your foot speed, jumping rope, push-ups and sit-ups - things like that are really important. Those things will pay off more than just doing what a bench press will.

I didn't care about that because I'm not a diplomatic person to begin with. I just went along with things and did what I wanted to do because I knew they had to shoot their 12 pages a day. And when they realized that I didn't alter the text they really didn't mind what I did.

Conceptual art became the liberating idea that gave the art of the next 40 years its real impetus.

When grace happens, we receive not a nice compliment from God but a new heart. Give your heart to Christ, and he returns the favor.

In the end, the only people who fail are those who do not try.

Meditation was a turning point for me. It helped me deal with a lot of stress and has given me a lot of relaxation.

It's all about becoming a more well-rounded player and not a one-dimensional player. You might hear someone say, 'Hilton Head sets up well for them.' I don't want that stereotype.

Youth is such a wonderful thing. What a crime to waste it on children.

When I realised I was transgender I was so afraid of what my transition would do to everyone else in my life and how they would react to it and would I be rejected?

I had a gig in Sweden. There were thousands of people there, and when I launched into 'I'm Yours,' they were all singing along. It was as if I was singing the Swedish national anthem. I was stunned.

You can expect interior enforcement actions in the future.

Vampires were an excellent springboard. I still love them; they fascinate me.

A lot of romantic comedies are just light romantic dramas, or the comedy comes off second-best.

Trust is not established in the absence of betrayal but in those whose betrayalis least.

I think competition is very important; it breeds many good things in a person.

Despair is deadly sin but worse it is mortal folly.