“A painter paints his pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence.”

— Leopold Stokowski

Addressing an audience at Carnegie Hall, as quoted in The New York Times (11 May 1967); often this is quoted without the humorous final sentence.
Context: A painter paints his pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence. We provide the music, and you provide the silence.

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Leopold Stokowski 8

British conductor 1882–1977

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