--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I always imagined music trapped inside my…" description: "\"I always imagined music trapped inside my clarinet, not trapped inside of me. But what if music is what escapes when a heart breaks?\" — Jandy Nelson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7b/jandy-nelson-1913_break_i-always-imagined-music-trapped-inside-m_2636230.png" --- # I always imagined music trapped inside my clarinet, not… ![“I always imagined music trapped inside my clarinet, not trapped inside of me. But what if music is what escapes when a heart breaks?” quote by Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7b/jandy-nelson-1913_break_i-always-imagined-music-trapped-inside-m_2636230.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7b/jandy-nelson-1913_break_i-always-imagined-music-trapped-inside-m_2636230.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7b/jandy-nelson-1913_break_i-always-imagined-music-trapped-inside-m_2636230.png) > “I always imagined music trapped inside my clarinet, not trapped inside of me. But what if music is what escapes when a heart breaks?” [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Music can be both a personal refuge and an outward expression of emotional pain, suggesting that heartbreak releases creative energy. **In simple terms:** Music can be a personal and outward expression of pain. Key Takeaway Channel heartbreak into creative expression. Themes creativity emotion music Mood melancholic hopeful Type artistic reflective When to use this quote - writing songs - playing instruments - journaling - therapy - performance Key Concepts artistic expression emotional release Questions to Reflect On - How can you turn pain into art? - What outlets help you express sorrow? A Different Perspective Not all heartbreak leads to artistic output; some may feel numb. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Break](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/break/) [Clarinet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clarinet/) [Clarinet Trapped](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clarinet-trapped-2231004/) [Escapes Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/escapes-heart-364980/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Heart break](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart-break/) [Heart breaks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart-breaks/) [Inside Clarinet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inside-clarinet-2231006/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Music is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music-is/) [Music Trapped](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music-trapped-2231005/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [What if](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/what-if/) ## Related quotes > [But what if music is what escapes when a heart breaks?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/but-what-if-music-is-what-escapes-when-a-heart-breaks/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [When anyone escapes, my heart / leaps up. Even when it's I who am escaped from, / I am half on the side of the leaver.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-olds/when-anyone-escapes-my-heart-leaps-up-even-when-it-s-i-who-am-escaped/) [Sharon Olds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-olds/) > [“And then yesterday…” He tosses the clarinet onto the bed. “Found out you belong to me.” He points at me. “I own your ass”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/and-then-yesterday-he-tosses-the-clarinet-onto-the-bed-found-out-you/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [I was improvising before I was reading music. I was just trying to play things on the clarinet by ear. I think my ear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-fountain/i-was-improvising-before-i-was-reading-music-i-was-just-trying-to/) [Pete Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-fountain/) > [I've been writing music since I was 9. I took harmony and counterpoint classes when I was studying the clarinet. So, I've been writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-shore/i-ve-been-writing-music-since-i-was-9-i-took-harmony-and-counterpoint/) [Howard Shore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-shore/) > [Yeah, musically, from a production standpoint my favorite is probably 'Have a Little Talk with Jesus'. Just the way it turned out production wise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bart-millard/yeah-musically-from-a-production-standpoint-my-favorite-is-probably/) [Bart Millard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bart-millard/) > [I began with dance, doing ballet at 3, then tap, jazz, modern. Then I sang in church choirs, learned how to play clarinet and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-barks/i-began-with-dance-doing-ballet-at-3-then-tap-jazz-modern-then-i-sang/) [Samantha Barks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-barks/) > [Ted Lewis could make the clarinet talk. What it said was put me back in the case!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-condon/ted-lewis-could-make-the-clarinet-talk-what-it-said-was-put-me-back/) [Eddie Condon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-condon/) > [“Heath holds the door to the band room open for me, and I get to my chair without falling, snapping together my clarinet and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mindy-mcginnis/heath-holds-the-door-to-the-band-room-open-for-me-and-i-get-to-my/) [Mindy McGinnis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mindy-mcginnis/) > [My eyes are too big, my nose is too flat, my ears stick out, my mouth is too big and my face is too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/goldie-hawn/my-eyes-are-too-big-my-nose-is-too-flat-my-ears-stick-out-my-mouth-is/) [Goldie Hawn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/goldie-hawn/) > [The oboe sounds like a clarinet with a cold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-borge/the-oboe-sounds-like-a-clarinet-with-a-cold/) [Victor Borge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-borge/) > [We decided to do some of Merle's things with modern instrumentation. We used a flute, a bass clarinet, a trumpet, a clarinet, drums, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-ernie-ford/we-decided-to-do-some-of-merle-s-things-with-modern-instrumentation/) [Tennessee Ernie Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-ernie-ford/) > [Clarinets, like lawyers, have cases, mouthpieces, and they need a constant supply of hot air in order to function.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-borge/clarinets-like-lawyers-have-cases-mouthpieces-and-they-need-a/) [Victor Borge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-borge/) > [So the ideology was that: use sounds as instruments, as sounds on tape, without the causality. It was no longer a clarinet or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luc-ferrari/so-the-ideology-was-that-use-sounds-as-instruments-as-sounds-on-tape/) [Luc Ferrari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luc-ferrari/) > [I started off playing the clarinet, after I was inspired by listening to my dad's Benny Goodman records.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-lee/i-started-off-playing-the-clarinet-after-i-was-inspired-by-listening/) [Alvin Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-lee/) ## More by Jandy Nelson > [And then he smiles, and in all the places around the globe where it's night, day breaks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/and-then-he-smiles-and-in-all-the-places-around-the-globe-where-it-s/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [Or maybe a person is just made up of a lot of peopleMaybe we’re accumulating these new selves all the time. Hauling them in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/or-maybe-a-person-is-just-made-up-of-a-lot-of-peoplemaybe-we-re/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [“How can people die when you’re in a fight with them? When you’re smack in the middle of hating them? When absolutely nothing between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/how-can-people-die-when-you-re-in-a-fight-with-them-when-you-re-smack/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [I wonder why bereaved people even bother with mourning clothes when the grief itself provides such an unmistakable wardrobe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/i-wonder-why-bereaved-people-even-bother-with-mourning-clothes-when/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [... if you're someone who knows the worst thing can happen at any time, aren't you also someone who knows the best thing can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/if-you-re-someone-who-knows-the-worst-thing-can-happen-at-any-time/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [“I want my sister. I want to hurl a building at God. I take a breath and exhale with enough force to blow the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/i-want-my-sister-i-want-to-hurl-a-building-at-god-i-take-a-breath-and/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [Grief is forever. It doesn't go away; it becomes part of you, step for step, breath for breath.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/grief-is-forever-it-doesn-t-go-away-it-becomes-part-of-you-step-for/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [“Una y otra vez, día tras día, me esforcé por ser vista. Solo quería que me prestara atención, no que me dejara tirada en…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/una-y-otra-vez-d-a-tras-d-a-me-esforc-por-ser-vista-solo-quer-a-que/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [grief is a house where the chairs have forgotten how to hold us the mirrors how to reflect us the walls how to contain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/grief-is-a-house-where-the-chairs-have-forgotten-how-to-hold-us-the/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [“I think if we don't stop kissing, the world is going to explode.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/i-think-if-we-don-t-stop-kissing-the-world-is-going-to-explode/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [He murmers into my hair, "Forget what I said earlier, let's stick with this, I might not survive anything more." I laugh. Then he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/he-murmers-into-my-hair-forget-what-i-said-earlier-let-s-stick-with/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [“Listen to me. It takes a lot of courage to be true to yourself, true to your heart. You always have been very brave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/listen-to-me-it-takes-a-lot-of-courage-to-be-true-to-yourself-true-to/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [Sometimes you think you know things, know things very deeply, only to realize you don't know a damn thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/sometimes-you-think-you-know-things-know-things-very-deeply-only-to/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [I have an impulse to write all over the orange walls- I need an alphabet of endings ripped out of books, of hands pulled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/i-have-an-impulse-to-write-all-over-the-orange-walls-i-need-an/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [“I'd been making desicions for days. I picked out the dress Bailey would wear forever- a black slinky one- innapropriate- that she loved. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/i-d-been-making-desicions-for-days-i-picked-out-the-dress-bailey/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) [Explore all 183 Jandy Nelson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) ## More Break quotes > [I made, like, five movies while I was in college. I think they just weren't memorable movies. I've taken breaks as the years have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/i-made-like-five-movies-while-i-was-in-college-i-think-they-just/) [Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/) > [Things are going well in Germany because the economy is booming and as an export-driven nation, we are profiting from the fact that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-schulz/things-are-going-well-in-germany-because-the-economy-is-booming-and/) [Martin Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-schulz/) > [There were songs that we cut out after we chose the name, because 'Praise Break' turned out to be an underlying concept that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-caesar/there-were-songs-that-we-cut-out-after-we-chose-the-name-because/) [Daniel Caesar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-caesar/) > [“He didn't break my heart. No one can break your heart except you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/he-didn-t-break-my-heart-no-one-can-break-your-heart-except-you/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [“She couldn't break the orbit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-schwab/she-couldn-t-break-the-orbit/) [Victoria Schwab](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-schwab/) > [Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding. Even as the stone of the fruit must break, that its heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/your-pain-is-the-breaking-of-the-shell-that-encloses-your/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [Must I go bound while you go free Must I love a manwho doesn't love me Must I be born with so little art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/must-i-go-bound-while-you-go-free-must-i-love-a-manwho-doesn-t-love/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I hadn't worked for a year when I had my Prison Break audition and it was the easiest audition I've ever had. I got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wentworth-miller/i-hadn-t-worked-for-a-year-when-i-had-my-prison-break-audition-and-it/) [Wentworth Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wentworth-miller/) > [If you strike upon a thought that baffles you, break off from that entanglement and try another, so shall your wits be fresh to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/if-you-strike-upon-a-thought-that-baffles-you-break-off-from-that/) [Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/) > [“A hole ain’t nothing either, but you can still break your neck in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-donati/a-hole-ain-t-nothing-either-but-you-can-still-break-your-neck-in-it/) [Sara Donati](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-donati/) > [“I break things, a lot of things, but I don’t want one of them to be you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-briggs/i-break-things-a-lot-of-things-but-i-don-t-want-one-of-them-to-be-you/) [Patricia Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-briggs/) > [Motor racing's less of a sport these days than a commercial break doing 150 mph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-dunne/motor-racing-s-less-of-a-sport-these-days-than-a-commercial-break/) [Peter Dunne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-dunne/) > [Much like teaching art to young art students age 10 to 15 or so on, you have to break it down into bite-sized pieces,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/much-like-teaching-art-to-young-art-students-age-10-to-15-or-so-on/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [The purpose is to be in gratitude forever. Live with applied consciousness, prosperity will break through the walls, flood you with it. You do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh-yogi/the-purpose-is-to-be-in-gratitude-forever-live-with-applied/) [Harbhajan Singh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh-yogi/) > [Never break another man's rice bowl.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akio-morita/never-break-another-man-s-rice-bowl/) [Akio Morita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akio-morita/) [Browse all 8,188 Break quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/break/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I always imagined music trapped inside my clarinet, not trapped inside of me. 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