The worst thing you can do is say to yourself, "I want to be just like somebody else." You have to absorb knowledge from someone else, but ultimately you have to find your own voice.

You go through phases. You have to reinvent reasons for playing, and one year's answer might not do for another.

My involvement in the political arena is to make sure there's a place for culture.

Perfection is not very communicative

I've been traveling all over the world for 25 years, performing, talking to people, studying their cultures and musical instruments, and I always come away with more questions in my head than can be answered.

We may be coming to a new golden age of instrument making.

Practicing is not only playing your instrument, either by yourself or rehearsing with others - it also includes imagining yourself practicing. Your brain forms the same neural connections and muscle memory whether you are imagining the task or actually doing it.