--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The first thing that struck me about…" description: "\"The first thing that struck me about contemporary music in general had been thatthere was not much interest in rhythm.\" — Elliott Carter" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/418/elliott-carter-23733_contemporary_the-first-thing-that-struck-me-about-con_893879.png" --- # The first thing that struck me about contemporary music in… ![“The first thing that struck me about contemporary music in general had been thatthere was not much interest in rhythm.” quote by Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/418/elliott-carter-23733_contemporary_the-first-thing-that-struck-me-about-con_893879.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/418/elliott-carter-23733_contemporary_the-first-thing-that-struck-me-about-con_893879.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/418/elliott-carter-23733_contemporary_the-first-thing-that-struck-me-about-con_893879.png) > “The first thing that struck me about contemporary music in general had been thatthere was not much interest in rhythm.” [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Contemporary music often neglects rhythm, focusing more on other musical elements. **In simple terms:** Modern music ignores rhythm. Key Takeaway Pay attention to rhythm in composition. Themes music modernism rhythm Mood analytical thoughtful Type critical educational When to use this quote - composing - listening - education - performance Key Concepts structure tempo innovation Questions to Reflect On - How does rhythm affect emotional impact? - Can music thrive without strong rhythm? A Different Perspective Rhythm is essential for listener engagement. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Contemporary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contemporary/) [Contemporary music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contemporary-music/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interest/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Rhythm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rhythm/) [Struck Contemporary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struck-contemporary-1176472/) [Thatthere Rhythm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thatthere-rhythm-1176471/) ## Related quotes > [These wealthy people were very interested in contemporary music. They wanted to help diffuse it and get it to be known to other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/these-wealthy-people-were-very-interested-in-contemporary-music-they/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [Then, when the Depression came, all of this changed completely. Since that time, the entire public is of a very different sort and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/then-when-the-depression-came-all-of-this-changed-completely-since/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [Obviously there are pieces of classical music that are some of the most beautiful music ever written, for me anyway is a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryce-dessner/obviously-there-are-pieces-of-classical-music-that-are-some-of-the/) [Bryce Dessner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryce-dessner/) > [My mother was a classical pianist and my stepfather was an industrialist who was passionate about composing contemporary music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-bruni/my-mother-was-a-classical-pianist-and-my-stepfather-was-an/) [Carla Bruni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-bruni/) > [I have always personally preferred to think of what is more difficult for my instrument, and not what is the most natural or the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michala-petri/i-have-always-personally-preferred-to-think-of-what-is-more-difficult/) [Michala Petri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michala-petri/) > [The Internet is just one of those things that contemporary humans can spend millions of 'practice' events at, that the average human a thousand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-merzenich/the-internet-is-just-one-of-those-things-that-contemporary-humans-can/) [Michael Merzenich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-merzenich/) > [You know, I listen to contemporary music all the time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-de-palma/you-know-i-listen-to-contemporary-music-all-the-time/) [Brian De Palma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-de-palma/) > [I feel that contemporary music, with very few exceptions, is missing the voice. You see an award show, you see a hundred extras on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-davis/i-feel-that-contemporary-music-with-very-few-exceptions-is-missing/) [Clive Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-davis/) > [My musical life started with hearing and being fascinated by contemporary music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/my-musical-life-started-with-hearing-and-being-fascinated-by/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [I mean the public likes it more in Europe than they do here because the state supported organizations have felt that playing contemporary music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/i-mean-the-public-likes-it-more-in-europe-than-they-do-here-because/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [It was a matter of not seeing the woods for the trees. Glorious songs have been in Ireland forever, but a lot of these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-coulter/it-was-a-matter-of-not-seeing-the-woods-for-the-trees-glorious-songs/) [Phil Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-coulter/) > [I've realised that if it is to remain relevant, contemporary music needs to change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryuichi-sakamoto/i-ve-realised-that-if-it-is-to-remain-relevant-contemporary-music/) [Ryuichi Sakamoto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryuichi-sakamoto/) > [On 'Underground,' we had used contemporary music to pull you into the present and not just look at it as a portrait on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/misha-green/on-underground-we-had-used-contemporary-music-to-pull-you-into-the/) [Misha Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/misha-green/) > [My work has been marginalized as far as the jazz-business complex is concerned, or the contemporary-music complex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-braxton/my-work-has-been-marginalized-as-far-as-the-jazz-business-complex-is/) [Anthony Braxton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-braxton/) > [I don't think anyone listening to my music needs any special knowledge. They don't need to have a background in contemporary music. They don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/missy-mazzoli/i-don-t-think-anyone-listening-to-my-music-needs-any-special/) [Missy Mazzoli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/missy-mazzoli/) ## More by Elliott Carter > [My entire life has really revolved around music that was written about the time that I was born, 1908, to just before the First…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/my-entire-life-has-really-revolved-around-music-that-was-written/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [When people listen to my music, I hope that they will notice that if you take a piece by a composer like Schubert, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/when-people-listen-to-my-music-i-hope-that-they-will-notice-that-if/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [Then, when the Depression came, all of this changed completely. Since that time, the entire public is of a very different sort and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/then-when-the-depression-came-all-of-this-changed-completely-since/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [Aaron Copland was a man that had a very specific point of view about what music should be which was that, he felt that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/aaron-copland-was-a-man-that-had-a-very-specific-point-of-view-about/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [These wealthy people were very interested in contemporary music. They wanted to help diffuse it and get it to be known to other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/these-wealthy-people-were-very-interested-in-contemporary-music-they/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [In any case, Ives encouraged me to go into music even though he himself had such a hard time being a composer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/in-any-case-ives-encouraged-me-to-go-into-music-even-though-he/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [Well when I was young, when I was very young, when I was a little boy I don't remember the music I heard, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/well-when-i-was-young-when-i-was-very-young-when-i-was-a-little-boy-i/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [That was one of the big problems when I was at Harvard studying music. We had to write choral pieces in the style of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/that-was-one-of-the-big-problems-when-i-was-at-harvard-studying-music/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [Silences between movements are employed only in order to bring the opposing duo to the fore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/silences-between-movements-are-employed-only-in-order-to-bring-the/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [Since I'm allergic to various things, the army wouldn't accept me during the war, and I got into the Office of War Information, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/since-i-m-allergic-to-various-things-the-army-wouldn-t-accept-me/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [Talking about a materialistic thing, I get about 13 times more royalties from Europe than I do from America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/talking-about-a-materialistic-thing-i-get-about-13-times-more/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [Right at the end of the war I wrote a piano sonata, which was written at a time when Sam Barber used to come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/right-at-the-end-of-the-war-i-wrote-a-piano-sonata-which-was-written/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [I've known those pieces ever since I was about 16 or 17; I also at that time was taken to meet Charles Ives whom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/i-ve-known-those-pieces-ever-since-i-was-about-16-or-17-i-also-at/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [Why write for the orchestra? For one thing it's a very challenging problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/why-write-for-the-orchestra-for-one-thing-it-s-a-very-challenging/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) > [It was only later on that I became more interested in older music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/it-was-only-later-on-that-i-became-more-interested-in-older-music/) [Elliott Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) [Explore all 25 Elliott Carter quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/) ## More Contemporary quotes > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-yen/personally-i-prefer-contemporary-films-but-the-market-calls-for-more/) [Donnie Yen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-yen/) > [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/) [Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/) > [What really concerns me is for Christians to understand the fundamentals of evangelism in a way that is helpful in the contemporary scene.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/what-really-concerns-me-is-for-christians-to-understand-the/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [“And for God's sake, don't let her watch Cinderella. What kind of example is that? A mindless twit who can't even remember where she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-chase/and-for-god-s-sake-don-t-let-her-watch-cinderella-what-kind-of/) [Emma Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-chase/) > [On the one hand, we had great filmic spectacles that brought in big audiences, adults as well as primary and secondary school students. On…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-wajda/on-the-one-hand-we-had-great-filmic-spectacles-that-brought-in-big/) [Andrzej Wajda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-wajda/) > [“No." I pulled away just enough to lock my eyes with his. His crooked smile sent shivers down my spine. His eyes were a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-witter/no-i-pulled-away-just-enough-to-lock-my-eyes-with-his-his-crooked/) [Stephanie Witter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-witter/) > [One of those blocks (that prevent the 'Middle East from entering the mainstream of modernity') is the orthodox tenet that the Koran and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-beichman/one-of-those-blocks-that-prevent-the-middle-east-from-entering-the/) [Arnold Beichman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-beichman/) > [The boundaries between contemporary art and cinema are so rigid. It's unbelievable. The film critics don't know my artwork and the art world doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/the-boundaries-between-contemporary-art-and-cinema-are-so-rigid-it-s/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) > [I'm educating myself more about world poetry. I know a lot about contemporary American poetry, so I felt I needed to learn more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-joseph/i-m-educating-myself-more-about-world-poetry-i-know-a-lot-about/) [Allison Joseph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allison-joseph/) > [We have created indoor installations inside museums, like the Wrapped Floor at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago in 1968, and not monumental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christo/we-have-created-indoor-installations-inside-museums-like-the-wrapped/) [Christo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christo/) > [Going back to the noir fiction of the 30s, 40s and 50s. It's very contemporary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-goldblum/going-back-to-the-noir-fiction-of-the-30s-40s-and-50s-it-s-very/) [Jeff Goldblum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goldblum/) > [Most of my contemporary grant-getters are now doing something other than painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-genn/most-of-my-contemporary-grant-getters-are-now-doing-something-other/) [Robert Genn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-genn/) > [“The contemporary world has turned its back on the attempt and even on the desire to live reasonably.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/the-contemporary-world-has-turned-its-back-on-the-attempt-and-even-on/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [No, it's interesting to remake a film for the contemporary audience today. I think it's a good idea; it needs to respect the original…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dario-argento/no-it-s-interesting-to-remake-a-film-for-the-contemporary-audience/) [Dario Argento](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dario-argento/) [Browse all 1,586 Contemporary quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contemporary/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The first thing that struck me about contemporary music in general had been thatthere was not much interest in rhythm.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elliott Carter" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/the-first-thing-that-struck-me-about-contemporary-music-in-general/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Contemporary" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/the-first-thing-that-struck-me-about-contemporary-music-in-general/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/418/elliott-carter-23733_contemporary_the-first-thing-that-struck-me-about-con_893879.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/418/elliott-carter-23733_contemporary_the-first-thing-that-struck-me-about-con_893879.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/418/elliott-carter-23733_contemporary_the-first-thing-that-struck-me-about-con_893879.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The first thing that struck me about contemporary music in general had been thatthere was not much interest…” — Elliott Carter", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Elliott Carter", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-carter/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The first thing that struck me...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/the-first-thing-that-struck-me-about-contemporary-music-in-general/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-carter/the-first-thing-that-struck-me-about-contemporary-music-in-general/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```