By the time I was eight I was taking classical piano lessons and I wanted to be a concert pianist. But that didn't work out. I graduated from high school and my formal education ended.

Jazz is a white term to define black people. My music is black classical music.

My singing, if you want to call it that is merely another medium of expression. Just an instrument I play. That's how I see my voice.

Everything that happened to me as a child involved music. It was part of everyday life, as automatic as breathing.

It is difficult to retain your standards with the pressure of trying to make money, which always has its rules...It's hard to walk the tightrope of doing what you think is your best and making money at it.

I demand perfection in what I do, and I practice very hard before I give a concert-sometimes three to six hours a day.

I'm a nut for Bach as a composer.