"You compose because you want to somehow summarize in some permanent form your most basic feelings about being alive, to set down... some sort of permanent statement about the way it feels to live now, today"

This quote by Aaron Copland talks to the power of structure and the desire to record the essence of life in a long-term kind. It suggests that through structure, we can express our deepest feelings about being alive and produce a long lasting statement about the existing state of life. This quote stresses the importance of composition as a way to capture the appeal and complexity of life and to produce something that will outlast us. It also talks to the power of music and art to communicate our emotions and experiences in a manner that words can not. Ultimately, this quote motivates us to use composition to catch the essence of life and to develop something that will stand the test of time.