---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is possible to enjoy the Mozart…"
description: "\"It is possible to enjoy the Mozart concerto without being able to play the clarinet. In fact, you can learn to be an expert connoisseur of music withou..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/richard-dawkins-115_able_it-is-possible-to-enjoy-the-mozart-conce_2799164.jpg"
---

#  It is possible to enjoy the Mozart concerto without being…

![“It is possible to enjoy the Mozart concerto without being able to play the clarinet. In fact, you can learn to be an expert connoisseur of music without being able to play a note on any instrument. Of course, music would come to a halt if nobody ever learned to play it. But if everybody grew up…” quote by Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/richard-dawkins-115_able_it-is-possible-to-enjoy-the-mozart-conce_2799164.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/richard-dawkins-115_able_it-is-possible-to-enjoy-the-mozart-conce_2799164.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/richard-dawkins-115_able_it-is-possible-to-enjoy-the-mozart-conce_2799164.jpg)

> “It is possible to enjoy the Mozart concerto without being able to play the clarinet. In fact, you can learn to be an expert connoisseur of music without being able to play a note on any instrument. Of course, music would come to a halt if nobody ever learned to play it. But if everybody grew up thinking that music was synonymous with playing it, think how relatively impoverished many lives would be. Couldn't we learn to think of science in the same way?”

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

## About This Quote

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

An argument that appreciating music doesn’t require playing it, suggesting a broader view of expertise that could apply to science.

**In simple terms:** Enjoy music without playing it;

Key Takeaway

Broaden definitions of expertise.

Themes

music expertise accessibility

Mood

thoughtful inclusive

Type

philosophical educational

When to use this quote

- music appreciation
- science outreach
- learning strategies

Key Concepts

philosophy education

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we value appreciation over performance?
- What parallels exist between music and science learning?

A Different Perspective

May undervalue skill development.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Experts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experts/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/)

## Related quotes

> [The ability to play the clarinet is the ability to overcome the imperfections of the instrument. There's no such thing as a perfect clarinet,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-brymer/the-ability-to-play-the-clarinet-is-the-ability-to-overcome-the/)

Jack Brymer

> [“I called Monsieur Menicucci, and he asked anxiously about my pipes. I told him they were holding up well. "That pleases me," he said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-mayle/i-called-monsieur-menicucci-and-he-asked-anxiously-about-my-pipes-i/)

[Peter Mayle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-mayle/)

> [I'm a little musically inclined; I play the clarinet and the saxophone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-murray/i-m-a-little-musically-inclined-i-play-the-clarinet-and-the-saxophone/)

[Joel Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-murray/)

> [ \[I wanted\] to play the clarinet well so I could be in Duke Ellington's band, but that's now impossible. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nat-hentoff/i-wanted-to-play-the-clarinet-well-so-i-could-be-in-duke-ellington-s/)

[Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nat-hentoff/)

> [I always used to listen to quite a bit of classical music because my dad liked it, and if you've got any ear for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-hucknall/i-always-used-to-listen-to-quite-a-bit-of-classical-music-because-my/)

[Mick Hucknall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-hucknall/)

> [When I'm playing music I'm usually not thinking of surfing, just because I'm usually thinking about the chords and the lyrics, and sometimes that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-johnson/when-i-m-playing-music-i-m-usually-not-thinking-of-surfing-just/)

[Jack Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-johnson/)

> [I think it all comes back to the individual. My instrument's just a pile of metal and wood! If you listen to the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefon-harris/i-think-it-all-comes-back-to-the-individual-my-instrument-s-just-a/)

[Stefon Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefon-harris/)

> [“Thinking that coding is the nerdy IT guy at work rebooting your computer is like thinking that music is what happens when the piano…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/thinking-that-coding-is-the-nerdy-it-guy-at-work-rebooting-your/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Beyond that, it gets down to the nuts and bolts of discipline - not a tradition or genre, I don't care about that, actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-iyer/beyond-that-it-gets-down-to-the-nuts-and-bolts-of-discipline-not-a/)

[Vijay Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-iyer/)

> [Music feels so environmental to me, especially the process of working with synths or mixing. I started thinking about music as a psychological landscape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-polachek/music-feels-so-environmental-to-me-especially-the-process-of-working/)

[Caroline Polachek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-polachek/)

> [“It had never occured to me that thinking and music are so much alike. In fact, you can say music is another way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/it-had-never-occured-to-me-that-thinking-and-music-are-so-much-alike/)

[Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/)

> [When I lived in New York, there wasn't as much TV or film around. I got asked to do a couple of indie films,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-iha/when-i-lived-in-new-york-there-wasn-t-as-much-tv-or-film-around-i-got/)

[James Iha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-iha/)

> [I think we have to change our thinking and the music industry has to shift and look at how people are acquiring their music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warryn-campbell/i-think-we-have-to-change-our-thinking-and-the-music-industry-has-to/)

[Warryn Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warryn-campbell/)

> [“I started thinking more about music. I thought I'd accepted the fact that, as part of "Being Gretchen," I didn't really like music, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-rubin/i-started-thinking-more-about-music-i-thought-i-d-accepted-the-fact/)

[Gretchen Rubin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretchen-rubin/)

> [I'm very much thinking in music most of the time, but I really would love to start filming because when I was a teenager,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trentem-ller/i-m-very-much-thinking-in-music-most-of-the-time-but-i-really-would/)

[Trentemøller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trentem-ller/)

## More by Richard Dawkins

> [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [The word 'mundane' has come to mean 'boring' and 'dull', and it really shouldn't - it should mean the opposite. Because it comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-word-mundane-has-come-to-mean-boring-and-dull-and-it-really/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [We animals are the most complicated things in the known universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-animals-are-the-most-complicated-things-in-the-known-universe/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [“The fundamentalist Kurt Wise proclaims that all the evidence in the universe would not change his mind. The true scientist, however passionately he may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-fundamentalist-kurt-wise-proclaims-that-all-the-evidence-in-the/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [“I have found it an amusing strategy, when asked whether I am an atheist, to point out that the questioner is also an atheist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-found-it-an-amusing-strategy-when-asked-whether-i-am-an/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [Religions do make claims about the universe--the same kinds of claims that scientists make, except they're usually false.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/religions-do-make-claims-about-the-universe-the-same-kinds-of-claims/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [“much of the Bible is not systematically evil but just plain weird, as you would expect of a chaotically cobbled-together anthology of disjointed documents,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/much-of-the-bible-is-not-systematically-evil-but-just-plain-weird-as/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [The recurrent laryngeal nerve - which runs from the head to the voice box - goes all the way down into the chest, loops…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-recurrent-laryngeal-nerve-which-runs-from-the-head-to-the-voice/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [The Roman Catholic Church is an institution for whose gains the phrase "ill-gotten" might have been specially invented. And of all its money-making rip-offs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-roman-catholic-church-is-an-institution-for-whose-gains-the/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [Let us understand what our own selfish genes are up to because we may then at least have the chance to upset their designs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/let-us-understand-what-our-own-selfish-genes-are-up-to-because-we-may/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [What's going to happen when I die? I may be buried, or I may be cremated, I may give my body to science. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/what-s-going-to-happen-when-i-die-i-may-be-buried-or-i-may-be/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [Or why it is acceptable to train fast runners and high jumpers but not to breed them. I can think of some answers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/or-why-it-is-acceptable-to-train-fast-runners-and-high-jumpers-but/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [We have seen that living things are too improbable and too beautifully 'designed' to have come into existence by chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-have-seen-that-living-things-are-too-improbable-and-too/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [“We will not go quietly away. If in the future that requires violence”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-will-not-go-quietly-away-if-in-the-future-that-requires-violence/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

> [It's a truly disgusting idea that the creator of the universe - capable of inventing the laws of physics and designing the evolutionary process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-creator-of-the-universe-capable/)

[Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

[Explore all 1,239 Richard Dawkins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/)

## More Able quotes

> [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/)

[Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/)

> [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/)

[Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/)

> [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/)

[Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/)

> [In the '80s, the way radio was programmed, if you didn't have a hit record you weren't going to be able to make any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huey-lewis/in-the-80s-the-way-radio-was-programmed-if-you-didn-t-have-a-hit/)

[Huey Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huey-lewis/)

> [I think I've had the longest career of strength, focus, and still being able to sell records. I think I'm that guy. I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/)

[Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/)

> [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/)

[Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/)

> [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/)

[Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/)

> [I wanted to remember in order to be able to return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-wanted-to-remember-in-order-to-be-able-to-return/)

[Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/)

> [Government schools, with your tax money, now discourage the teaching of multiplication tables by rote memorization but teach reading by the 'look-and-say' method which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-perry/government-schools-with-your-tax-money-now-discourage-the-teaching-of/)

Greg Perry

> [I don't know if I would qualify as mainstream. I think I have managed to function pretty successfully on the fringes of the music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-metheny/i-don-t-know-if-i-would-qualify-as-mainstream-i-think-i-have-managed/)

[Pat Metheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-metheny/)

> [What we're supposed to do as actors is be able to portray real human beings and emotions. And if you grow up in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-browning/what-we-re-supposed-to-do-as-actors-is-be-able-to-portray-real-human/)

[Emily Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-browning/)

> [The reason that Apple is able to create products like iPad is because we always try to be at the intersection of technology and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-reason-that-apple-is-able-to-create-products-like-ipad-is-because/)

[Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/)

> [It was an important period for us, because even though we weren't a "punk band", and what became a model for a punk band,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-mallinder/it-was-an-important-period-for-us-because-even-though-we-weren-t-a/)

[Stephen Mallinder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-mallinder/)

> [- You look fine. - Right. I look fine. Except I don't, said Zora, tugging sadly at her man's nightshirt. This was why Kiki…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/you-look-fine-right-i-look-fine-except-i-don-t-said-zora-tugging/)

[Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/)

> [There is a way to be a woman, ask for what we deserve and be able to negotiate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracee-ellis-ross/there-is-a-way-to-be-a-woman-ask-for-what-we-deserve-and-be-able-to/)

[Tracee Ellis Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracee-ellis-ross/)

Browse all 17,257 Able quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "It is possible to enjoy the Mozart concerto without being able to play the clarinet. In fact, you can learn to be an expert connoisseur of music without being able to play a note on any instrument. Of course, music would come to a halt if nobody ever learned to play it. But if everybody grew up thinking that music was synonymous with playing it, think how relatively impoverished many lives would be. Couldn't we learn to think of science in the same way?",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Richard Dawkins"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-is-possible-to-enjoy-the-mozart-concerto-without-being-able-to/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Able"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-is-possible-to-enjoy-the-mozart-concerto-without-being-able-to/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/richard-dawkins-115_able_it-is-possible-to-enjoy-the-mozart-conce_2799164.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/richard-dawkins-115_able_it-is-possible-to-enjoy-the-mozart-conce_2799164.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd3/richard-dawkins-115_able_it-is-possible-to-enjoy-the-mozart-conce_2799164.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“It is possible to enjoy the Mozart concerto without being able to play the clarinet. In fact, you can learn…” — Richard Dawkins",
                "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": "Richard Dawkins",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "It is possible to enjoy the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-is-possible-to-enjoy-the-mozart-concerto-without-being-able-to/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-is-possible-to-enjoy-the-mozart-concerto-without-being-able-to/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
