Jazz is not just music, it's a way of life, it's a way of being, a way of thinking.
Music has been a burden and a joy for as long as I can remember.
To most white people, jazz means black and jazz means dirt, and that's not what I play. I play black classical music.
What kept me sane was knowing that things would change, and it was a question of keeping myself together until they did.
You can't help it. An artist's duty, as far as I'm concerned, is to reflect the times.
I'm a real rebel with a cause.