Formalized Music: Thought and Mathematics in Composition,

"Art, and, above all, music, has a fundamental function, which is to catalyze the sublimation that it can bring about through all means of expression. It must aim through fixations which are landmarks, to draw [one] towards a total exaltation in which the individual mingles, losing his consciousness in a truth immediate, rare, enormous, and perfect. If a work of art succeeds in this undertaking even for a single moment, it attains its goal."

— Iannis Xenakis

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets ""Art, and, above all, music, has a fundamental function, which is to catalyze the sublimation that it can bring about through all means of expression. It must aim through fixations which are landmarks, to draw [one] towards a total exaltation in which the individual mingles, losing his consciousness in a truth immediate, rare, enormous, and perfect. If a work of art succeeds in this undertaking even for a single moment, it attains its goal."" in the context of "Formalized Music: Thought and Mathematics in Composition," to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "Iannis Xenakis" (Quotes) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Iannis Xenakis

About Iannis Xenakis

Iannix Xenakis (May 29, 1922 – February 4, 2001) was a Greek composer and architect and major contributor to musical modernism.