"the little miracle of precision"

"For a long time I had in mind to tell the story of an orchestra rehearsal, because whenever I attended one [...] I always had these mixed feelings of emotion, disbelief, skepticism and joyful amazement. In other words, to witness how disorder, confusion, such diverse moods [...] indifference and the argumentative spirit of such disparate individuals can be merged into a single, harmonious yet abstract design as is music [...], to be present at the little miracle of precision that punctually renews itself and enables this little community to reach out towards a common purpose, all together yet individually [...] always fills me with a sense of touching surprise, like the vague perception that this situation harbors, emblematically, the ideal archetype of a society that can live and express itself in harmony."

- Federico Fellini, on the genesis of his film Prova d'orchestra (Orchestra Rehearsal, 1978), featuring music by Nino Rota (listen here)