The strength of Gresham's book is its combination of diversity and focus. Each interview centers on a specific topic. He's saying that a complete person has to have a sense of humor.
Music is the sine qua non of human existence.
Atlanta connections abound in the book. Robert Shaw is not profiled, but his seminal choral work is discussed by several of the interview subjects, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Morton Gould, who died last year.