15+ Gunther Schuller Quotes On Music, Art And Education

Gunther Schuller was an American composer, conductor, horn player, author, historian, and jazz musician. He was one of the principal architects of the Third Stream movement, which blended classical and jazz music. Schuller was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1994 for his composition Of Reminiscences and Reflections. Following is our collection on famous quotes by Gunther Schuller on music, art, education.

After the war, once the bop revolution had taken hold, there were all kinds of young musicians, talented young musicians, who were ready for this fusion of classical and jazz. — Gunther Schuller

As rich as Cincinnati was in live music, New York was even more. — Gunther Schuller

So this anchoring in some way, in some important way in the past without repeating the past, but on the basis of the past building something new: that is what is important. — Gunther Schuller

Many people think of me as a modernist, as a radical in music, you know, someone who's always sort of at the avant-garde of musics, but I'm also quite a traditionalist. — Gunther Schuller

As long as I'm healthy and can keep going that's what I'll do. — Gunther Schuller

If you mess around with jazz, you better have a good drummer and a good bass player. — Gunther Schuller

My primary calling, I always knew since the age of 11, was as a composer, and so that had to take priority. — Gunther Schuller

My whole childhood was filled with classical music and going to concerts of the New York Philharmonic and other New York ensembles and organizations, but interestingly, I didn't become conscious of wanting to be a musician until I was about 11. I was a rather late starter. — Gunther Schuller

If we could ever find that moment, maybe thousands of years from now, where all the musics of the worlds would be communicating with each other, there would be no more wars, there would be peace. — Gunther Schuller

Symphony musicians are not trained in improvising, certainly not in a jazz style. — Gunther Schuller

I don't hate work, composing is not work for me, it's my pleasure; it's my life. So why should I stop? If something is pleasurable and exciting and rewarding, why should one stop? — Gunther Schuller

I was playing in the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra as principal horn. I was there for some 15 years - one of the most exciting and great musical periods in my life. — Gunther Schuller

And it is this sense that some of us have to contribute to the culture, to the society in ways that may hurt financially, so what? We do it because we are born to do it, we feel we have no other choice and so be it. — Gunther Schuller

I wanted to be a painter and an artist. And it's interesting that in some of my later musical works, I refer so often and associate myself with works of art. — Gunther Schuller

I wanted to be an artist, but at age 11, somehow all this musical knowledge and information and love for music that I had came out, and then suddenly it was very clear that I wanted to be a musician of some sort. — Gunther Schuller

Life Lessons by Gunther Schuller

1. Gunther Schuller's work demonstrates the importance of experimentation and collaboration in the creative process, as he drew from a variety of musical styles and worked with a wide range of musicians.
2. Schuller's compositions demonstrate the power of combining the traditional with the modern, as he often blended classical and jazz elements in his work.
3. By embracing a variety of musical influences, Schuller's work shows the importance of being open to new ideas and approaches in order to create something truly unique and innovative.