Dmitri Shostakovich

I always try to write on the edge of what is possible.

The revolution in music is a revolution in the heart.

Fear has many definitions, but for me, it's the fear of not being true to myself.

Music is the only thing that can save us from the madness of the world.

In the Soviet Union, we compose with one hand on the pen and the other on the sword.

Every composer has his own voice, but the state tries to make it a chorus.

The symphony is the tragedy of a lonely man.

I write music to express what words cannot.

Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts the arts absolutely.

My music is a cry against the machine.

Life without music is like a body without a soul.

Critics are like eunuchs: they know what it is, but they can't do it.

The best music comes from the deepest pain.

In times of terror, art becomes a weapon.

I am not a hero, just a man who writes notes.

Harmony is the illusion of order in chaos.

The public wants entertainment, but I give them truth.

Stalin's death was the best thing that happened to Soviet music.

Composing is like breathing: you can't stop.

The string quartet is the diary of a composer's soul.