Delius on the role of music

“The chief reason for the degeneration of present-day music lies in the fact that people want to get physical sensations from music more than anything else. Emotion is out of date and intellect a bore. Appreciation of art which has been born of profound thought and intensity of experience necessitates an intellectual effort too exhausting for most people in the present day. In the age of neurasthenics music, like everything else, must be a stimulant, must be alcoholic, aphrodisiac, or it is no good.”

Delius in a 1920s edition of The Sackbut.

Cited in: Julian Haylock, “Delius”, Classic FM, December 2010, p.46

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