"It's hard for me to think of others because I'm not particularly in sympathy with the music of this century"

This quote by Alan Hovhaness talks to the problem of connecting with the music of the present century. Hovhaness is revealing his problem in understanding and having compassion with the music of the current century. He is suggesting that he is not able to associate with the music of the current century, and for that reason it is tough for him to think about others who may be in compassion with it. This might be translated as a commentary on the changing nature of music and how it has ended up being progressively hard to relate to it. It might likewise be analyzed as a commentary on the absence of connection between the current generation and the music of the past. Hovhaness is expressing his difficulty in understanding and sympathizing with the music of the current century, and this could be viewed as a reflection of the detach in between the present generation and the music of the past.