Music is a blend of passion, melody, harmony, rhythm and creativity. Whether simple or sophisticated, it can capture a range of moods and emotion. It can soothe us or cause us to stir.

Skilful performers and composers, past and present, give dancers a beat, singers a song and listeners a story to ponder and enjoy. Here are some thoughts from musicians and others about the craft of making music:

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"What we play is life."

-- Louis Armstrong

"There are more love songs than anything else. If songs could make you do something we’d all love one another."

-- Frank Zappa

"In order to compose, all you need to do is remember a tune that nobody else has thought of."

-- Robert Schumann

"The best music is essentially there to provide you something to face the world with."

-- Bruce Springsteen

"The way I feel about music is that there is no right and wrong. Only true and false."

-- Fiona Apple

"If I’m going to Hell, I’m going there playing the piano."

-- Jerry Lee Lewis

"Whether you are playing in the bar, the church, the strip joint, or the Himalayas, the first duty of music is to complement and enhance life."

-- Carlos Santana

"A guy walks up to me and asks, ‘What’s Punk?’ So I kick over a garbage can and say, ‘That’s punk!’ So he kicks over the garbage can and says, ‘That’s Punk?’ and I say, ‘No, that’s trend."

-- Billie Joe Armstrong, Green Day

"I always felt rock and roll was very, very wholesome music."

-- Aretha Franklin

"When music fails to agree to the ear, to soothe the ear and the heart and the senses, then it has missed its point."

-- Maria Callas