6 ideas
Unlimited choice paralyzes the composer because every option is equally available, so no decision carries weight. By narrowing the field of action and surrounding himself with obstacles, the artist gains strength and precision. The more controls he imposes, the freer he becomes to invent within them.
Some music runs parallel to clock time and produces calm and unity through similarity. Other music departs from it, speeding or distorting the listener's felt time through contrast and emotional impulse. Composing means choosing which relationship to real time a piece will have.
Contrast gives immediate variety but scatters the listener's attention. Similarity is harder to achieve and yields deeper, more lasting unity. The composer should seek coherence first and use contrast sparingly, in service of the whole.
Music's purpose is to establish order between sound and time, and particularly between people and time. It does not depict emotions, scenes, or ideas. Expressive meanings are projections the listener adds, not properties of the notes.
Invention arises from the act of working, much as appetite comes from eating, rather than arriving as a mystical revelation beforehand. Inspiration follows disciplined labor. The artist should be viewed as an artisan who shapes material by skill and method.
Execution strictly realizes what the composer wrote, while interpretation adds the performer's personality and often distorts the work. Fidelity to the score is a moral duty of the performer.