Creativity is what makes humanity move. We were created to participate.

I'm my own most merciless critic onstage.

I'm not talking ideas, or even presentation. It's like in politics: You have to sell something to become an electric player - like your skin or your heart.

If a person plays dissonance long enough, it will sound like consonance. It's a language that was alien and then it's less and less alien as it continues to live.

Once we're inside a tune, we can do anything with it.

... The 'cleverness' syndrome has taken the place of melody. It's like everyone has come down with this terrible disease in jazz....you are always expected to do your own material, which is a strange thing to do if you're a poor composer but a great player.

Ideally, I'd like to be the eternal novice, for then only the surprises would be endless.