Another area where the influences of Cage and Feldman are strongly felt is in DeLio's extensive use of silence as a compositional device. On the surface, in fact, DeLio's music bears a strong resemblance to the music of Cage and Feldman, both of whom made extensive use of sparse textures and were not afraid to use silence as a key part of their compositions. Upon further examination, however, one finds that the function of silence in music varies significantly among the three composers. Feldman, for example used silence to separate sounds and give them space to fade into silence. DeLio notes, “Feldman once said that one of the most beautiful things a sound does is decay. He could have added that in order for this decay to be felt, it must be attached to silence.” Cage, on the other hand, used silence as a compositional tool for incorporating unintentional, atmospheric sounds into the context of a musical composition. DeLio explains, “Cage, of course, is the real source of all consideration of silence in music. But even his approach to silence is not like mine – though I deeply admire his work. For Cage silence is the space in which all unintended sounds come into play.” DeLio's use of silence is different in that it is used to isolate sounds and events. He explains: