--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've always felt that there's a point…" description: "\"I've always felt that there's a point where a piece seems to be alive, that is, living. And that's the point where I know the composition is finished.\"..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fb/david-tudor-42565_alive_i-ve-always-felt-that-there-s-a-point-wh_109708.png" --- # I've always felt that there's a point where a piece seems… ![“I've always felt that there's a point where a piece seems to be alive, that is, living. And that's the point where I know the composition is finished.” quote by David Tudor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fb/david-tudor-42565_alive_i-ve-always-felt-that-there-s-a-point-wh_109708.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fb/david-tudor-42565_alive_i-ve-always-felt-that-there-s-a-point-wh_109708.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8fb/david-tudor-42565_alive_i-ve-always-felt-that-there-s-a-point-wh_109708.png) > “I've always felt that there's a point where a piece seems to be alive, that is, living. And that's the point where I know the composition is finished.” [David Tudor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-tudor/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The composer feels a work becomes alive when it reaches a state where no further changes are needed, indicating completion. **In simple terms:** A piece feels alive when it’s finished. Key Takeaway Completion is sensed when a work feels alive. Themes creativity artistic process completion aesthetic judgment Mood reflective inspired Type artistic insight philosophical observation When to use this quote - finalizing a musical composition - finishing a painting - concluding a software feature Key Concepts artistic intuition creative resolution Practical Applications - trust instinct to know when to stop - use iterative feedback to gauge liveliness Questions to Reflect On - What cues signal that a creative work is alive? - Can a piece be alive yet unfinished? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ## Related quotes > [The ultimate point of a piece for me is that it drives the next one. Does it open new doors? That's the success of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/the-ultimate-point-of-a-piece-for-me-is-that-it-drives-the-next-one/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [After all, the work isn't the point; the piece is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-judd/after-all-the-work-isn-t-the-point-the-piece-is/) [Donald Judd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-judd/) > [“But he doesn't see what's so great about leaving your mark on things. You have a life and then it ends and you're dead.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-r-carey-2/but-he-doesn-t-see-what-s-so-great-about-leaving-your-mark-on-things/) M. R. Carey > [All of us in all the Americas will be living at the point of a gun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/all-of-us-in-all-the-americas-will-be-living-at-the-point-of-a-gun/) [Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) > [Whenever you take a subject you're obsessed with or that haunts you, and make a movie about it, you're converting it into work units…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-maddin/whenever-you-take-a-subject-you-re-obsessed-with-or-that-haunts-you/) [Guy Maddin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-maddin/) > [Musical compositions, it should be remembered, do not inhabit certain countries, certain museums, like paintings and statues. The Mozart Quintet is not shut up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-rabaud/musical-compositions-it-should-be-remembered-do-not-inhabit-certain/) Henri Rabaud > [The unary Photograph has every reason to be banal, 'unity' of composition being the first rule of vulgar (and notably, of academic) rhetoric: 'The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/the-unary-photograph-has-every-reason-to-be-banal-unity-of/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [I always look at money not as a motivating factor but as an element in the composition. You can't ignore it, but you've got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-hirst/i-always-look-at-money-not-as-a-motivating-factor-but-as-an-element/) [Damien Hirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-hirst/) > [Though I cannot claim to be a Christian in the sectarian sense, the example of Jesus suffering is a factor in the composition of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/though-i-cannot-claim-to-be-a-christian-in-the-sectarian-sense-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [When I start writing a new imaginary future, I have no idea what it is. The characters arrive first. They help me figure out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/when-i-start-writing-a-new-imaginary-future-i-have-no-idea-what-it-is/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [A composition is always more than the sum of its parts. In other words, a really good piece of music is more than itself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yo-yo-ma/a-composition-is-always-more-than-the-sum-of-its-parts-in-other-words/) [Yo-Yo Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yo-yo-ma/) > [Writers and musicians know well the importance of extensive reading for successful writing or extensive listening for musical composition. Likewise, visual artists... understand that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-laseau/writers-and-musicians-know-well-the-importance-of-extensive-reading/) [Paul Laseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-laseau/) > [At the risk of some oversimplification, if the skill composition of our work force meshed fully with the needs of our increasingly complex capital-stock,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/at-the-risk-of-some-oversimplification-if-the-skill-composition-of/) [Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/) > [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) Ted Martinez ## More by David Tudor > [I am perfectly willing for my music to exist with somebody else's taste.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-tudor/i-am-perfectly-willing-for-my-music-to-exist-with-somebody-else-s/) [David Tudor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-tudor/) > [I persist in performing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-tudor/i-persist-in-performing/) [David Tudor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-tudor/) > [Performing is very much like cooking: putting it all together, raising the temperature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-tudor/performing-is-very-much-like-cooking-putting-it-all-together-raising/) [David Tudor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-tudor/) > [Most electronic equipment uses the principle of amplification. You need filters, modulators and mixing equipment which have gain stages. By piling these components up,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-tudor/most-electronic-equipment-uses-the-principle-of-amplification-you/) [David Tudor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-tudor/) > [Take the classic experiment of using ordinary feedback: just take the output of something and feed it back into the input. Those of us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-tudor/take-the-classic-experiment-of-using-ordinary-feedback-just-take-the/) [David Tudor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-tudor/) > [The basic notion was the idea that the loudspeaker should have a voice which was unique and not just an instrument of reproduction, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-tudor/the-basic-notion-was-the-idea-that-the-loudspeaker-should-have-a/) [David Tudor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-tudor/) > [If you put yourself in a situation of unpredictability and then find that it's completely possible to accept it, then you become an observer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-tudor/if-you-put-yourself-in-a-situation-of-unpredictability-and-then-find/) [David Tudor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-tudor/) > [Loudspeakers should be made to be destroyed and... disposable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-tudor/loudspeakers-should-be-made-to-be-destroyed-and-disposable/) [David Tudor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-tudor/) > [I've never been able to arouse any interest in myself for digitally produced sound, and so the computer turns me off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-tudor/i-ve-never-been-able-to-arouse-any-interest-in-myself-for-digitally/) [David Tudor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-tudor/) [Explore all 10 David Tudor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-tudor/) ## More Alive quotes > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) Adam Ant > [I don't crave applause. I'm not one of those guys who comes alive on stage. I'm much more alive at home, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/i-don-t-crave-applause-i-m-not-one-of-those-guys-who-comes-alive-on/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [I can't say that there are 'things' that make me come alive. There are thoughts that make me come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-can-t-say-that-there-are-things-that-make-me-come-alive-there-are/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-re-like-the-wicked-witch-we-promise-gingerbread-then-eat-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [If Jovan Belcher didn't possess a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-costas/if-jovan-belcher-didn-t-possess-a-gun-he-and-kasandra-perkins-would/) [Bob Costas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-costas/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I think adoption becomes complicated whenever the biological parents are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haven/i-think-adoption-becomes-complicated-whenever-the-biological-parents/) [James Haven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haven/) > [The pain of love is the pain of being alive. It is a perpetual wound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/the-pain-of-love-is-the-pain-of-being-alive-it-is-a-perpetual-wound/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [If Melanchthon were alive today, he might not weep because of controversies that surround the Lord's Supper, but he might well sorrow because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-w-lutzer/if-melanchthon-were-alive-today-he-might-not-weep-because-of/) [Erwin W. Lutzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-w-lutzer/) > [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [Here Greek and Roman find themselves alive along these crowded shelves; and Shakespeare treads again his stage, and Chaucer paints anew his age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-greenleaf-whittier/here-greek-and-roman-find-themselves-alive-along-these-crowded/) [John Greenleaf Whittier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-greenleaf-whittier/) > [You're alive!" Fezzik cried. The man in black sat immobile, like a ventriloquist's dummy, just his mouth moving. "That is perhaps the most childishly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/you-re-alive-fezzik-cried-the-man-in-black-sat-immobile-like-a/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) [Browse all 7,282 Alive quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I've always felt that there's a point where a piece seems to be alive, that is, living. 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