--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Since music has never had a Rembrandt, we…" description: "\"Since music has never had a Rembrandt, we have remained nothing more than musicians.\" — Morton Feldman" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/550/morton-feldman-20186_music_since-music-has-never-had-a-rembrandt-we_277319.png" --- # Since music has never had a Rembrandt, we have remained… ![“Since music has never had a Rembrandt, we have remained nothing more than musicians.” quote by Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/550/morton-feldman-20186_music_since-music-has-never-had-a-rembrandt-we_277319.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/550/morton-feldman-20186_music_since-music-has-never-had-a-rembrandt-we_277319.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/550/morton-feldman-20186_music_since-music-has-never-had-a-rembrandt-we_277319.png) > “Since music has never had a Rembrandt, we have remained nothing more than musicians.” [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Artists may feel inferior without a singular masterpiece, but their collective work still holds value. **In simple terms:** Artists lack a single masterpiece. Key Takeaway Value the collective output. Themes art creativity humility self‑worth Mood thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - creative projects - collaborations - self‑assessment Key Concepts music composition artistic identity comparative legacy Questions to Reflect On - What defines success in your art? - How do you balance humility and ambition? A Different Perspective The quote might dismiss the importance of striving for excellence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Musician](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/musician/) [Musicians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/musicians/) [Rembrandt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rembrandt/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) ## Related quotes > [I started off playing by ear, and being around a bunch of musicians and playing in the streets and in the different parades and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/troy-andrews/i-started-off-playing-by-ear-and-being-around-a-bunch-of-musicians/) [Troy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/troy-andrews/) > [I don't like to travel as much as I have in the past, but it's good for my soul to get to pick, especially…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-scruggs/i-don-t-like-to-travel-as-much-as-i-have-in-the-past-but-it-s-good/) [Earl Scruggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-scruggs/) > [Having played with other musicians, I don't even think The Beatles were that good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-harrison/having-played-with-other-musicians-i-don-t-even-think-the-beatles/) [George Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-harrison/) > [Even though I have often recorded alone, I still feel the best music is made by musicians playing off each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fogerty/even-though-i-have-often-recorded-alone-i-still-feel-the-best-music/) [John Fogerty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fogerty/) > [Often, equipment can as easily function as a security blanket for musicians unwilling or unable to risk anything personal in the studio. Whether one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-landau/often-equipment-can-as-easily-function-as-a-security-blanket-for/) [Jon Landau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-landau/) > [There are so many different musicians I look up to for different reasons - from hip-hop to rock to pop. Some are Alanis Morissette,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manika/there-are-so-many-different-musicians-i-look-up-to-for-different/) [Manika](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manika/) > [A lot of musicians are really hard to deal with. They aren't as smart as me...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-e-smith/a-lot-of-musicians-are-really-hard-to-deal-with-they-aren-t-as-smart/) [Mark E. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-e-smith/) > [Really good musicians don't think of "self-reflection."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-bejar/really-good-musicians-don-t-think-of-self-reflection/) [Dan Bejar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-bejar/) > [I love working with different musicians in the studio, that's a real joy working with someone for the first time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-seger/i-love-working-with-different-musicians-in-the-studio-that-s-a-real/) [Bob Seger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-seger/) > [What I envy about musicians is, they have this more direct relationship with the audience. They don't have to go through words. Sure, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-vandermeer/what-i-envy-about-musicians-is-they-have-this-more-direct/) [Jeff VanderMeer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-vandermeer/) > [I like the idea of being a student, and I play with very good musicians. So playing with them allows me to get better.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-goldblum/i-like-the-idea-of-being-a-student-and-i-play-with-very-good/) [Jeff Goldblum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goldblum/) > [An element I love about the blues is jamming with other musicians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-hoey/an-element-i-love-about-the-blues-is-jamming-with-other-musicians/) [Gary Hoey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-hoey/) > [I know a lot of people that have had fake Twitters... actors and musicians that I know. It's sort of a problem. There are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zooey-deschanel/i-know-a-lot-of-people-that-have-had-fake-twitters-actors-and/) [Zooey Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zooey-deschanel/) > [Under Thatcher, who ruled us with an iron rod, great art was made. Amazing designers and musicians. Acid house was born. Very colourful and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-gallagher/under-thatcher-who-ruled-us-with-an-iron-rod-great-art-was-made/) [Noel Gallagher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-gallagher/) > [I think musicians should stay off television generally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/i-think-musicians-should-stay-off-television-generally/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) ## More by Morton Feldman > [The most interesting aspect for me, composing exclusively with patterns, is that there is not one organizational procedure more advantageous than another, perhaps because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/the-most-interesting-aspect-for-me-composing-exclusively-with/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [Art in relation to life is nothing more than a glove turned inside out. It seems to have the same shapes and contours, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/art-in-relation-to-life-is-nothing-more-than-a-glove-turned-inside/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [Any professional knows that the flute and the piano is a boring combination. All you've got to arrive at is a kind of typical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/any-professional-knows-that-the-flute-and-the-piano-is-a-boring/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [For me it's the instrument. If I want to think of a flute and the state of the arts I hear a vibrato; I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/for-me-it-s-the-instrument-if-i-want-to-think-of-a-flute-and-the/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [For years I said if I could only find a comfortable chair I would rival Mozart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/for-years-i-said-if-i-could-only-find-a-comfortable-chair-i-would/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [Most music is metaphor, but Wolff is not. I am not metaphor either. Parable, maybe. Cage is sermon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/most-music-is-metaphor-but-wolff-is-not-i-am-not-metaphor-either/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [I'm not suspicious, I'm just careful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/i-m-not-suspicious-i-m-just-careful/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [I want to give my compliments to Australia. Ever since your government paid a few million dollars for a Jackson Pollack painting, I figure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/i-want-to-give-my-compliments-to-australia-ever-since-your-government/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [I never feel that my music is sparse or minimalist; the way fat people never really think they're fat. I certainly don't consider myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/i-never-feel-that-my-music-is-sparse-or-minimalist-the-way-fat-people/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [If you think you might have secret information listening to me, you're lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/if-you-think-you-might-have-secret-information-listening-to-me-you-re/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [I've been living with the minor second all my life and I finally found a way to handle it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/i-ve-been-living-with-the-minor-second-all-my-life-and-i-finally/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [No one has the Houdini school of composition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/no-one-has-the-houdini-school-of-composition/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [The tragedy of music is that it begins with perfection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/the-tragedy-of-music-is-that-it-begins-with-perfection/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [It appears to me that the subject of music, from Machaut to Boulez, has always been its construction. Melodies of 12-tone rows just don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/it-appears-to-me-that-the-subject-of-music-from-machaut-to-boulez-has/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) > [What was great about the 50s is that for one brief moment - maybe, say, six weeks - nobody understood art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/what-was-great-about-the-50s-is-that-for-one-brief-moment-maybe-say/) [Morton Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) [Explore all 31 Morton Feldman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/) ## More Music quotes > [I feel like I definitely have a real sporty style, more so than a lot of people in G.O.O.D. 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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/) > [ “Downloading's the same as what I used to do. I used to tape the charts of the songs I liked \[off the radio\]. I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liam-gallagher/downloading-s-the-same-as-what-i-used-to-do-i-used-to-tape-the-charts/) [Liam Gallagher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liam-gallagher/) > [I've been writing songs since I was 10 years old and always had a penchant for rhyming. I started listening to hip hop through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hoodie-allen/i-ve-been-writing-songs-since-i-was-10-years-old-and-always-had-a/) [Hoodie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hoodie-allen/) > [Each woman is like an instrument, waiting to be learned, loved, and finely played, to have at last her own true music made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/each-woman-is-like-an-instrument-waiting-to-be-learned-loved-and/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I want people to hear my lyrics and my melodies and say, 'That dude's in pain.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-moody/i-want-people-to-hear-my-lyrics-and-my-melodies-and-say-that-dude-s/) [Ivan Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivan-moody/) > [I make dance music because I love to dance. But I want to think at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stromae/i-make-dance-music-because-i-love-to-dance-but-i-want-to-think-at-the/) [Stromae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stromae/) > [There is something magical about being able to feel somebody. And that is something that has always moved me with music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-brink/there-is-something-magical-about-being-able-to-feel-somebody-and-that/) [Maria Brink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-brink/) > [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 received a beautiful welcome to the world of music. I want to give something back to the younger generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luciano-pavarotti/i-received-a-beautiful-welcome-to-the-world-of-music-i-want-to-give/) [Luciano Pavarotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luciano-pavarotti/) [Browse all 55,293 Music quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Since music has never had a Rembrandt, we have remained nothing more than musicians.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Morton Feldman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/since-music-has-never-had-a-rembrandt-we-have-remained-nothing-more/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Music" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/since-music-has-never-had-a-rembrandt-we-have-remained-nothing-more/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/550/morton-feldman-20186_music_since-music-has-never-had-a-rembrandt-we_277319.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/550/morton-feldman-20186_music_since-music-has-never-had-a-rembrandt-we_277319.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/550/morton-feldman-20186_music_since-music-has-never-had-a-rembrandt-we_277319.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Since music has never had a Rembrandt, we have remained nothing more than musicians.” — Morton Feldman", "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": "Morton Feldman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-feldman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Since music has never had a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/since-music-has-never-had-a-rembrandt-we-have-remained-nothing-more/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-feldman/since-music-has-never-had-a-rembrandt-we-have-remained-nothing-more/#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 } } ] } ```