When I came up, it was all about originality and collective research. There is an awful lot of imitation going on now.

Nobody was playing the soprano saxophone and certainly nobody was trying to do anything with it. So I was all alone. I didn't know that at first.

It starts with a single sound. If there's something in that sound, then it's worth continuing.

Bamboo is not a weed, it's a flowering plant. Bamboo is a magnificent plant.

When I found the music of Monk I finally found music that fit that horn. Every one of his tunes fit it perfectly.

I started in New Orleans music and played all through the history of jazz.

Kenny G, I have to be grateful to him for proving that the instrument can be played all different kinds of ways.