People in a tiny apartment in Japan, in a baroque concert hall in Europe, or on a broad summer lawn in America can be deeply touched by the same music. The beauty and affirmation of Brahms's music, for example, reaches out to millions.
A glimpse of why so many feel so moved by this composer's music comes from a remarkable interview he gave late in his life. The interviewer obviously knew of Brahms's faith in divine Spirit, and asked him how he felt able to reach or find God.
The composer replied: "It cannot be done merely by will power working through the conscious mind, which ... perishes with the body. ... Jesus taught us that God is Spirit, and [he] also said, 'I and my Father are one.' (John 10:30) To realize that we are one with the Creator, as Beethoven did, is a wonderful and awe-inspiring experience. ... I always contemplate all this before commencing to compose. This is the first step."Quoted in Arthur M. Abell, Talks with Great Composers (New York: Philosophical Library, 1955), pp. 4-5.
