The saxophone is actually a translation of the human voice, in my conception. All you can do is play melody. No matter how complicated it gets, it's still a melody.

I compulsively reach for perfection in music, often at the expense of everything else in my life.

You can read all the textbooks and listen to all the records, but you have to play with musicians that are better than you.

My dark sound could be heard across a room clearer than somebody with a reedy sound. It had more projection. My sound always seemed to fill a room.

Other than conversation, no other art form can give the satisfaction of spontaneous interaction like Jazz.

I cannot play a lie. I have to believe in what I play or it won't come out.

The saxophone is actually a translation of the human voice, in my conception. All you can do is play melody. No matter how complicated it gets, it's still a melody.