14+ Russell Sherman Quotes On War, Art And Education

Russell Sherman is an American classical pianist. He has been performing since the 1950s and is known for his interpretations of the works of Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms. He is also a professor of music at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. Following is our collection on famous quotes by Russell Sherman on war, art, education.

To play the piano is to consort with nature. Every mollusk, galaxy, vapor or viper as well the sweet incense of love's distraction, is within the hands and grasp of the pianist. — Russell Sherman

Through music time is tamed, although music never forgets to remind us of time's faceless mission. — Russell Sherman

Without silence there is no music. Not simply because the faculty of hearing deteriorates from constant exposure to noise, but because silence is both the majestic frame and the stable solution for musical (and poetic) ideas. Silence is the soda water, the bracing ether, the bridge and mode of respect for receiving instructions from the angel. — Russell Sherman

A work of art expresses itself as a balance sheet pitting the spoken against the unspoken. — Russell Sherman

To master the piano is to master the universe. — Russell Sherman

When we play music we describe the echo the tableau of natural forms, their shapes and arrangements, as uncovered by the composer's imagination, which yet must be filtered through our own. There is no other way. And in acknowledging this tableau, this revelation, we must "hesitate", we must doubt, as the composer doubted, for no valid creation can issue unscarred by doubt, by that vast flux of wonder which precedes the construction of being. — Russell Sherman

The contradictory, consuming, contested relationship between detail and whole, event an eventuality, breathes fire and wisdom in every great work of art. — Russell Sherman

Art is a process of concentration. It is both the distilled essence and the commentary upon otherwise mundane activities and reflections. Musical notes must be charged, must gather more than one and the surface meaning, must reveal audible and "inaudible" connections to other notes, patterns, and meaning, either by way of affinity or contrast. — Russell Sherman

The work of art, though bound by its genetic markings and indelible fingerprints, is boundless in the infinite elaborations of its destiny, and therefore in the range of its interpretations. — Russell Sherman

The music of the supreme architect, Bach, is filled with pages of discursive argument and rumination, glorifying the nameless whole by a rich embroidery of passages which lead everywhere and nowhere. The ideas are presented, stood on their head, dissolved into fragments, until the ultimate message becomes the connections of all things great and small, a chain of being which cannot be secured until the last note is in place. — Russell Sherman

Surely common sense as well as anthropological evidence documents the universal need to pray, to hope, and to lament or carouse through song. — Russell Sherman

The context for music is varied and profound. If their fantasy is to be awakened-so that their sounds may be incisive or ravishing-then the menagerie of saints and dragons must be faithfully recalled. — Russell Sherman

The breath, prayers, and libido of the fingertip must somehow be transferred to the neutral indifference of the key. — Russell Sherman

As artists, are we quasi psychiatrists who mend the soul? Do we provide the consolations, escapes, and reassurances which enable us to survive? Or are we reporters of the truth, assembling the multiple shards of reality into intricate portraits which seek out the connections between misery and blessing, violence and wisdom? Do we protect or investigate the heart? — Russell Sherman

Life Lessons by Russell Sherman

1. Russell Sherman taught us that hard work and dedication are essential to achieving excellence in music. He also showed us the importance of maintaining a healthy balance between technique and artistry. Lastly, he demonstrated that with enough practice and focus, it is possible to reach a high level of musical mastery.