---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Music mirrors where we should go, have…"
description: "\"Music mirrors where we should go, have gone and can go. Music is an abstraction.\" — Max Roach"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83a/max-roach-32988_abstraction_music-mirrors-where-we-should-go-have-go_1086373.png"
---

#  Music mirrors where we should go, have gone and can go…

![“Music mirrors where we should go, have gone and can go. Music is an abstraction.” quote by Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83a/max-roach-32988_abstraction_music-mirrors-where-we-should-go-have-go_1086373.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83a/max-roach-32988_abstraction_music-mirrors-where-we-should-go-have-go_1086373.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83a/max-roach-32988_abstraction_music-mirrors-where-we-should-go-have-go_1086373.png)

> “Music mirrors where we should go, have gone and can go. Music is an abstraction.”

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Music reflects past, present, and future possibilities, acting as an abstract guide for direction.

**In simple terms:** Music shows where we’ve been and could go.

Key Takeaway

Use music to inspire vision.

Themes

creativity future abstraction

Mood

inspirational reflective

Type

artistic philosophical

When to use this quote

- songwriting
- branding
- personal motivation

Key Concepts

art theory cultural studies

Questions to Reflect On

- How does music shape your goals?
- What future does your soundtrack suggest?

A Different Perspective

May be too abstract for concrete planning.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Abstraction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/) [Gone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gone/) [Gone Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gone-music-2784612/) [Mirrors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mirrors/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Music Abstraction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music-abstraction-2784611/) [Music is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music-is/) [Music Mirrors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music-mirrors-1874939/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/)

## Related quotes

> [The music is the imperative. It has the upper hand. I think all music, even though it's an abstraction, does motivate a particular meaning.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/the-music-is-the-imperative-it-has-the-upper-hand-i-think-all-music/)

[Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/)

> [As a musician, it's only natural that my music mirrors my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anoushka-shankar/as-a-musician-it-s-only-natural-that-my-music-mirrors-my-life/)

[Anoushka Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anoushka-shankar/)

> [If I'd had good discipline, I might have gone into music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-eastwood/if-i-d-had-good-discipline-i-might-have-gone-into-music/)

[Clint Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-eastwood/)

> [Popular music was this abstraction - an abstraction that I was relating to immensely but was ultimately far away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelela/popular-music-was-this-abstraction-an-abstraction-that-i-was-relating/)

[Kelela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelela/)

> [I think that electronic music mirrors the complexity of "information landscapes." You carry the terrain in your mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dj-spooky/i-think-that-electronic-music-mirrors-the-complexity-of-information/)

[DJ Spooky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dj-spooky/)

> [In 'Self Comes to Mind' I pay a lot of attention to simple creatures without brains or minds, because those 'cartooned abstractions of who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-damasio/in-self-comes-to-mind-i-pay-a-lot-of-attention-to-simple-creatures/)

[Antonio Damasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-damasio/)

> [Computer Science is a science of abstraction -creating the right model for a problem and devising the appropriate mechanizable techniques to solve it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-aho/computer-science-is-a-science-of-abstraction-creating-the-right-model/)

[Alfred Aho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-aho/)

> [Yes, there was an element of abstraction and unreality in misfortune. But when an abstraction starts to kill you, you have to get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/yes-there-was-an-element-of-abstraction-and-unreality-in-misfortune/)

[Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/)

> [Cancer begins and ends with people. In the midst of scientific abstraction, it is sometimes possible to forget this one basic fact. Doctors treat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-goodfield/cancer-begins-and-ends-with-people-in-the-midst-of-scientific/)

[June Goodfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-goodfield/)

> [I like residing in abstraction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-like-residing-in-abstraction/)

[Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/)

> [Sometimes I start in a very realistic fashion, and as I go on from one painting to another of the same kind, it becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgia-o-keeffe/sometimes-i-start-in-a-very-realistic-fashion-and-as-i-go-on-from-one/)

[Georgia O'Keeffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgia-o-keeffe/)

> [But we must not underestimate the potency of the mathematical process of abstraction. A surprising variety of things happen to have both magnitude and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banesh-hoffmann/but-we-must-not-underestimate-the-potency-of-the-mathematical-process/)

[Banesh Hoffmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banesh-hoffmann/)

> [Two elements are needed to form a truth - a fact and an abstraction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/remy-de-gourmont/two-elements-are-needed-to-form-a-truth-a-fact-and-an-abstraction/)

[Remy de Gourmont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/remy-de-gourmont/)

> [The premises from which we begin are not arbitrary ones, not dogmas, but real premises from which abstraction can only be made in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/the-premises-from-which-we-begin-are-not-arbitrary-ones-not-dogmas/)

[Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/)

> [Everything in dancing is style, allusion, the essence of many thoughts and feelings. The abstraction of many moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-ailey/everything-in-dancing-is-style-allusion-the-essence-of-many-thoughts/)

[Alvin Ailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-ailey/)

## More by Max Roach

> [“In your lifetime, if you can come up with one original idea, you have accomplished a great deal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/in-your-lifetime-if-you-can-come-up-with-one-original-idea-you-have/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [My point is that we much decolonize our minds and re-name and re-define ourselves . . . In all respects, culturally, politically, socially, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/my-point-is-that-we-much-decolonize-our-minds-and-re-name-and-re/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [The people who really got me off were dealing with the musical potential of the Instrument.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/the-people-who-really-got-me-off-were-dealing-with-the-musical/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [The American drummer is a one-man percussion orchestra.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/the-american-drummer-is-a-one-man-percussion-orchestra/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [I didn't even apply. There was no warning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/i-didn-t-even-apply-there-was-no-warning/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [Jazz is a democratic musical form. We take our respective instruments & collectively create a thing of beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/jazz-is-a-democratic-musical-form-we-take-our-respective-instruments/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [I will never again play anything that does not have social significance. We American jazz musicians of African descent have proved beyond all doubt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/i-will-never-again-play-anything-that-does-not-have-social/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [You can't write the same book twice. Though I've been in historical musical situations, I can't go back and do that again. And though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/you-can-t-write-the-same-book-twice-though-i-ve-been-in-historical/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [Jazz is a very democratic musical form. It comes out of a communal experience. We take our respective instruments and collectively create a thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/jazz-is-a-very-democratic-musical-form-it-comes-out-of-a-communal/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [Monk encouraged me to emancipate the drums from their subservient role as timekeepers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/monk-encouraged-me-to-emancipate-the-drums-from-their-subservient/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [I think that the rhythm sections, drummers in particular, are the unsuing heroes of the music. It's the rhythm section that has changed the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/i-think-that-the-rhythm-sections-drummers-in-particular-are-the/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [I always resented the role of a drummer as nothing more than a subservient figure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/i-always-resented-the-role-of-a-drummer-as-nothing-more-than-a/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [They had all this talent, and they had no instruments. So they started rap music. They rhymed on their own. They made their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/they-had-all-this-talent-and-they-had-no-instruments-so-they-started/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

> [I used to take musical instruments home from elementary school. There were some music teachers there - we all learned instruments. A lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/i-used-to-take-musical-instruments-home-from-elementary-school-there/)

[Max Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

[Explore all 15 Max Roach quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/)

## More Abstraction quotes

> [Everything in dancing is style, allusion, the essence of many thoughts and feelings. The abstraction of many moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvin-ailey/everything-in-dancing-is-style-allusion-the-essence-of-many-thoughts/)

[Alvin Ailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvin-ailey/)

> [The premises from which we begin are not arbitrary ones, not dogmas, but real premises from which abstraction can only be made in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/the-premises-from-which-we-begin-are-not-arbitrary-ones-not-dogmas/)

[Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/)

> [Two elements are needed to form a truth - a fact and an abstraction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/remy-de-gourmont/two-elements-are-needed-to-form-a-truth-a-fact-and-an-abstraction/)

[Remy de Gourmont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/remy-de-gourmont/)

> [But we must not underestimate the potency of the mathematical process of abstraction. A surprising variety of things happen to have both magnitude and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banesh-hoffmann/but-we-must-not-underestimate-the-potency-of-the-mathematical-process/)

[Banesh Hoffmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banesh-hoffmann/)

> [Sometimes I start in a very realistic fashion, and as I go on from one painting to another of the same kind, it becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgia-o-keeffe/sometimes-i-start-in-a-very-realistic-fashion-and-as-i-go-on-from-one/)

[Georgia O'Keeffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgia-o-keeffe/)

> [I like residing in abstraction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-like-residing-in-abstraction/)

[Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/)

> [Cancer begins and ends with people. In the midst of scientific abstraction, it is sometimes possible to forget this one basic fact. Doctors treat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-goodfield/cancer-begins-and-ends-with-people-in-the-midst-of-scientific/)

[June Goodfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-goodfield/)

> [Yes, there was an element of abstraction and unreality in misfortune. But when an abstraction starts to kill you, you have to get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/yes-there-was-an-element-of-abstraction-and-unreality-in-misfortune/)

[Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/)

> [Computer Science is a science of abstraction -creating the right model for a problem and devising the appropriate mechanizable techniques to solve it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-aho/computer-science-is-a-science-of-abstraction-creating-the-right-model/)

[Alfred Aho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-aho/)

> [In 'Self Comes to Mind' I pay a lot of attention to simple creatures without brains or minds, because those 'cartooned abstractions of who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-damasio/in-self-comes-to-mind-i-pay-a-lot-of-attention-to-simple-creatures/)

[Antonio Damasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-damasio/)

> [Don't get stuck on the level of words. A word is no more than a means to an end. It's an abstraction. Not unlike…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/don-t-get-stuck-on-the-level-of-words-a-word-is-no-more-than-a-means/)

[Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/)

> [Holidays are in no sense an alternative to the congestion and bustle of the cities and work. Quite the contrary. People look to escape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baudrillard/holidays-are-in-no-sense-an-alternative-to-the-congestion-and-bustle/)

[Jean Baudrillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baudrillard/)

> [The pragmatist turns away from abstraction and insufficiency, from verbal solutions, from bad a priori reasons, from fixed principles, closed systems, and pretended absolutes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/the-pragmatist-turns-away-from-abstraction-and-insufficiency-from/)

[William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/)

> [ I'd say that \[Louis\] Brandeis practiced a kind of a "living originalism," to use the title of Jack Balkin's great book. He said you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-rosen/i-d-say-that-louis-brandeis-practiced-a-kind-of-a-living-originalism/)

[Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-rosen/)

> [When novels deal in abstractions, they generally go off the rails.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philipp-meyer/when-novels-deal-in-abstractions-they-generally-go-off-the-rails/)

[Philipp Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philipp-meyer/)

[Browse all 562 Abstraction quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abstraction/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Music mirrors where we should go, have gone and can go. Music is an abstraction.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Max Roach"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/music-mirrors-where-we-should-go-have-gone-and-can-go-music-is-an/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Abstraction"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/music-mirrors-where-we-should-go-have-gone-and-can-go-music-is-an/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83a/max-roach-32988_abstraction_music-mirrors-where-we-should-go-have-go_1086373.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83a/max-roach-32988_abstraction_music-mirrors-where-we-should-go-have-go_1086373.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83a/max-roach-32988_abstraction_music-mirrors-where-we-should-go-have-go_1086373.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Music mirrors where we should go, have gone and can go. Music is an abstraction.” — Max Roach",
                "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": "Max Roach",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-roach/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Music mirrors where we should go,...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/music-mirrors-where-we-should-go-have-gone-and-can-go-music-is-an/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-roach/music-mirrors-where-we-should-go-have-gone-and-can-go-music-is-an/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```