You must play for the love of music. Perfect technique is not as important as making music from the heart.

When I started learning the cello, I fell in love with the instrument because it seemed like a voice - my voice.

Explain to me, please, why in our literature and art so often people absolutely incompetent in this field have the final word.

Baalbek is so beautiful. It is the heart of beauty in the Middle East - I want to embrace these people with my music. I will try so hard for them. Their president is a Christian, their prime minister is a Muslim. Music is for everyone.

The cello is a hero because of its register - its tenor voice. It is a masculine instrument, whereas the violin is feminine because of its soprano pitch. When the cello enters in the Dvorak Concerto, it is like a great orator.

People are craving this great progress in electronics, going after computers, the Internet, etc. It's a giant progress technologically. But they must have a balance of soul, a balance for human beauty. That means art has an important role.

Capitalism, communism ... it's all garbage.