--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: composition is notation of distortion of…" description: "\"composition is notation of distortion of what composers think they've heard before. Masterpieces are marvelous misquotations.\" — Ned Rorem" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/28b/ned-rorem-14618_composer_composition-is-notation-of-distortion-of_2285003.png" --- # composition is notation of distortion of what composers… ![“composition is notation of distortion of what composers think they've heard before. Masterpieces are marvelous misquotations.” quote by Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/28b/ned-rorem-14618_composer_composition-is-notation-of-distortion-of_2285003.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/28b/ned-rorem-14618_composer_composition-is-notation-of-distortion-of_2285003.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/28b/ned-rorem-14618_composer_composition-is-notation-of-distortion-of_2285003.png) > “composition is notation of distortion of what composers think they've heard before. Masterpieces are marvelous misquotations.” [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Highlights that compositions often reinterpret familiar ideas, creating new artistic value **In simple terms:** Music reimagines what we think we know Key Takeaway Appreciate creative distortion as artistic innovation Themes creativity interpretation artistic tradition Mood analytical inspirational Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - composition workshops - music education - creative writing Key Concepts intertextuality musical quotation innovation Questions to Reflect On - How does distortion contribute to artistic originality? - In what ways do “misquotations” enrich a masterpiece? A Different Perspective May undervalue original inspiration in favor of novelty ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Composer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/composer/) [Distortion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distortion/) [Masterpiece](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/masterpiece/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Your sweet little book is a bizarre collection of out-of-context quotations, misquotations, misleading quotations, non sequiturs, errors of fact and just about every other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-pomona/your-sweet-little-book-is-a-bizarre-collection-of-out-of-context/) Donna Pomona > [The most familiar quotations are the most likely to be misquoted. Some misquotations are still variable, some have settled down to false versions that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-clinton-van-doren/the-most-familiar-quotations-are-the-most-likely-to-be-misquoted-some/) [Carl Clinton Van Doren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-clinton-van-doren/) > [Misquotations are the only quotations that are never misquoted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hesketh-pearson/misquotations-are-the-only-quotations-that-are-never-misquoted/) [Hesketh Pearson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hesketh-pearson/) > [The new kind of music seems to create not from the heart but from the head. Its composers think rather than feel. They have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergei-rachmaninoff/the-new-kind-of-music-seems-to-create-not-from-the-heart-but-from-the/) [Sergei Rachmaninoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergei-rachmaninoff/) > [I'm really drawn to West Coast composers and I think it has a little something to do with looking across the Pacific instead of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-morris/i-m-really-drawn-to-west-coast-composers-and-i-think-it-has-a-little/) [Mark Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-morris/) > [Composers often think in terms of music and not of an instrument itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michala-petri/composers-often-think-in-terms-of-music-and-not-of-an-instrument/) [Michala Petri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michala-petri/) > [A large part of my work has been collaborating with composers; I think we've commissioned about 140 pieces now, a lot of them percussion concertos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-glennie/a-large-part-of-my-work-has-been-collaborating-with-composers-i-think/) [Evelyn Glennie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-glennie/) > [I was growing up at a time when you just couldn't go to the movies without hearing immortal film music. And I inherited from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bear-mccreary/i-was-growing-up-at-a-time-when-you-just-couldn-t-go-to-the-movies/) [Bear McCreary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bear-mccreary/) > [What inspires me is not so much the music as the opportunity to interact with composers. I think that has driven everything I've done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-moog/what-inspires-me-is-not-so-much-the-music-as-the-opportunity-to/) [Robert Moog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-moog/) > [When you build a building, you finish a building. You don't finish a garden; you start it, and then it carries on with its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-eno/when-you-build-a-building-you-finish-a-building-you-don-t-finish-a/) [Brian Eno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-eno/) > [The lens, that allegedly impartial eye, permits all possible distortions of reality... The importance of photography lies not only in the fact that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gisele-freund/the-lens-that-allegedly-impartial-eye-permits-all-possible/) [Gisele Freund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gisele-freund/) > [RIGHTEOUS INDIGNATION is a manual and a call to action for awakened patriots who are too intelligent to believe the leftist media lies and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-palin/righteous-indignation-is-a-manual-and-a-call-to-action-for-awakened/) [Sarah Palin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-palin/) > [I try to become a singer. The guitar has always been abused with distortion units and funny sorts of effects, but when you don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-beck/i-try-to-become-a-singer-the-guitar-has-always-been-abused-with/) [Jeff Beck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-beck/) > [I looked around at what my colleagues were doing, and asked myself, 'What relationship has it with what's going on?' I found there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-parr/i-looked-around-at-what-my-colleagues-were-doing-and-asked-myself/) [Martin Parr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-parr/) > [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/) [Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/) ## More by Ned Rorem > [Greatness is not the effect of which inspiration is the cause. We are all inspired, but we are all not great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/greatness-is-not-the-effect-of-which-inspiration-is-the-cause-we-are/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [Intelligence is silence, truth is being invisible. But what a racket I make in declaring this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/intelligence-is-silence-truth-is-being-invisible-but-what-a-racket-i/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [If a composer could state in words what being a composer means, he would no longer need to be a composer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/if-a-composer-could-state-in-words-what-being-a-composer-means-he/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [Perfection is no more a requisite to art than to heroes. Frigidaires are perfect. Beauty limps. My frigidaire has had to be replaced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/perfection-is-no-more-a-requisite-to-art-than-to-heroes-frigidaires/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [Anyone can be gay - it's no accomplishment - but only I can be me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/anyone-can-be-gay-it-s-no-accomplishment-but-only-i-can-be-me/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [Inspiration could be called inhaling the memory of an act never experienced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/inspiration-could-be-called-inhaling-the-memory-of-an-act-never/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [The Great don't innovate, they fertilize seeds planted by lackeys, they leave to others the inhaling of the flowers whose roots they've manured. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/the-great-don-t-innovate-they-fertilize-seeds-planted-by-lackeys-they/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [If music could be translated into human speech, it would no longer need to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/if-music-could-be-translated-into-human-speech-it-would-no-longer/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [As a lifelong pacifist, Quaker, and a gay man, I despair that gays and lesbians are expending energy trying to get into the military…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/as-a-lifelong-pacifist-quaker-and-a-gay-man-i-despair-that-gays-and/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [“We endow our poor lovers with godly traits, and then destroy them for being mortal. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/we-endow-our-poor-lovers-with-godly-traits-and-then-destroy-them-for/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [All men are forced into one of two categories: those with eleven fingers and those without.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/all-men-are-forced-into-one-of-two-categories-those-with-eleven/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [Art's the biggest vanity: the assumption that one's view of peace or fright or beauty is permanently communicable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/art-s-the-biggest-vanity-the-assumption-that-one-s-view-of-peace-or/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [In music the present is extended.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/in-music-the-present-is-extended/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [“Sooner or later you’ve heard all your best friends have to say. Then comes the tolerance of real love. The same holds true for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/sooner-or-later-you-ve-heard-all-your-best-friends-have-to-say-then/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [To start writing about your life is, from one standpoint, to stop living it. You must avoid adventures today so as to make time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/to-start-writing-about-your-life-is-from-one-standpoint-to-stop/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) [Explore all 46 Ned Rorem quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) ## More Composer quotes > [A composer knows that music is written by human beings for human beings and that music is a continuation of life, not something separated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hanns-eisler/a-composer-knows-that-music-is-written-by-human-beings-for-human/) Hanns Eisler > [Bruce Katz is a spectacular talent! He's a brilliant composer and arranger who uses uncommon and unique musical intelligence to redefine jazz and blues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-coryell/bruce-katz-is-a-spectacular-talent-he-s-a-brilliant-composer-and/) [Larry Coryell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-coryell/) > [Trombone virtuoso and innovative composer, Papo combines the best of jazz and Latin music to create a genre that is unique and wild. He's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-brecker/trombone-virtuoso-and-innovative-composer-papo-combines-the-best-of/) Michael Brecker > [“- Mom, can I tell them there that I'm Romanian? - Sure, why not tell them? - I was thinking that they wouldn't think...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-enescu/mom-can-i-tell-them-there-that-i-m-romanian-sure-why-not-tell-them-i/) George Enescu > [The number of e-mails and letters that I get from choreographers, from sculptors, from composers who are being inspired by science is huge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-greene/the-number-of-e-mails-and-letters-that-i-get-from-choreographers-from/) [Brian Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-greene/) > [The architect is very interesting because the architect is the commander, meaning the one who commands all the workers. The architect is also the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santiago-calatrava/the-architect-is-very-interesting-because-the-architect-is-the/) [Santiago Calatrava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santiago-calatrava/) > [If a composer could state in words what being a composer means, he would no longer need to be a composer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ned-rorem/if-a-composer-could-state-in-words-what-being-a-composer-means-he/) [Ned Rorem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ned-rorem/) > [Seen from the point of view of the composer, the most nonsensical practice is that of casting people in musicals who are unable to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gold/seen-from-the-point-of-view-of-the-composer-the-most-nonsensical/) Ernest Gold > [I think there's just been this "thing" that's developed, this way that we have of talking about our music that alienates people. And I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/missy-mazzoli/i-think-there-s-just-been-this-thing-that-s-developed-this-way-that/) [Missy Mazzoli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/missy-mazzoli/) > [The ability to understand and deliver comedy and tragedy is extremely rare in one composer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/signe-baumane/the-ability-to-understand-and-deliver-comedy-and-tragedy-is-extremely/) [Signe Baumane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/signe-baumane/) > [When synthesizers appeared everyone was a composer suddenly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-desplat/when-synthesizers-appeared-everyone-was-a-composer-suddenly/) [Alexandre Desplat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-desplat/) > [A mission that comes from the heart to promote these things and to encourage composers to write, then of course they should do it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-andre-hamelin/a-mission-that-comes-from-the-heart-to-promote-these-things-and-to/) [Marc-Andre Hamelin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-andre-hamelin/) > [The beauty and genius of a work of art may be reconceived, though its first material expression be destroyed; a vanished harmony may yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-beebe/the-beauty-and-genius-of-a-work-of-art-may-be-reconceived-though-its/) [William Beebe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-beebe/) > [Every time I see a film or TV show, I think about how that composer made those choices and how that director envisioned music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lopez/every-time-i-see-a-film-or-tv-show-i-think-about-how-that-composer/) [Robert Lopez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lopez/) > [Like any other composer of opera, I choose a subject not for polemical reasons, but because it contains vivid characters in highly charged dramatic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlisle-floyd/like-any-other-composer-of-opera-i-choose-a-subject-not-for-polemical/) [Carlisle Floyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlisle-floyd/) [Browse all 885 Composer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/composer/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "composition is notation of distortion of what composers think they've heard before. 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