“ The theatre only knows what it's doing next week, not like the opera, where they say: What are we going to do in five years' time? A completely different attitude. Harrison Birtwistle
“ I'm not a music lover in the sense that I look for something to have on. I've never had that attitude to music. Harrison Birtwistle
“ My attitude to writing is like when you do wallpapering, you remember where all the little bits are that don't meet. And then your friends say: It's terrific! Harrison Birtwistle
“ I don't have ideas so much as there are things which constantly evolve... there are various threads or layers, if you like, which change. Harrison Birtwistle
“ When I was confronted with official tuition, the academic thing, I could see no relationship whatever between that and the music I'd been writing since I was 11. Harrison Birtwistle
