One of the most important elements in teaching, conducting, and performing, all three, is listening. Itzhak Perlman More Quotes by Itzhak Perlman More Quotes From Itzhak Perlman Sometimes it is the artist's task to find out how much music you can still make with what you have left. Itzhak Perlman tasks artist sometimes One must always practice slowly. If you learn something slowly, you forget it slowly. Itzhak Perlman forget-it practice forget Never miss an opportunity to teach; when you teach others, you teach yourself. Itzhak Perlman learning missing opportunity The most important thing to do is really listen. Itzhak Perlman important-things things-to-do important Perhaps our task in this shaky, fast-changing, bewildering world in which we live is to make music, at first with all that we have, and then, when that is no longer possible, to make music with what we have left. Itzhak Perlman tasks world firsts Every musical phrase has a purpose. It's like talking. If you talk with a particular purpose, people listen to you, but if you just recite, it's not as meaningful. Itzhak Perlman talking meaningful inspirational Ask many of us who are disabled what we would like in life and you would be surprised how few would say, 'Not to be disabled.' We accept our limitations. Itzhak Perlman disabled accepting would-be I always consider myself lucky that I can actually cry listening to some music. Itzhak Perlman cry lucky listening This young wine may have a lot of tannins now, but in five or 10 years it is going to be spectacular, despite the fact that right now it tastes like crude oil. You know this is how it is supposed to taste at this stage of development. Itzhak Perlman oil wine years I can actually see the sound in my head. I can actually see it... But each sound is different so this one has that sparkle, there is a sparkle to the sound. Itzhak Perlman sparkle different sound For every child prodigy that you know about, at least 50 potential ones have burned out before you even heard about them. Itzhak Perlman prodigies burned children Every person with a disability has a slightly different kind of disability. Not everybody has the same problems. Usually the wheelchairs are the wheelchairs. It's the same height and so on. It's a problem. Itzhak Perlman disability height different Nothing is better for my playing than teaching because when you teach, you have to think and you have to listen what other people do. And then all of a sudden, you play yourself and then you say, my goodness, I don't need a teacher. I'm my own teacher. Then I can react to what I'm doing immediately. It really improves. Itzhak Perlman teaching teacher thinking I always say separate your abilities from your disabilities. You know, if I could play the violin, I don't have to play it standing up. I can play it sitting down and so on. Itzhak Perlman sitting-down down-and play In difficult times, people just like to hear music. They like to be moved by what they hear. And music speaks different languages. Itzhak Perlman music different people Everybody has a different kind of talent and a different timetable as to when they develop. Itzhak Perlman talent music different Beethoven concertos ... Tchaicovsky concertos ... with a lot of these wonderful masterpieces there's always something wonderful to find ... there's always something new to find. Itzhak Perlman something-new music wonderful When you play a concerto with a small orchestra, you don't feel it is as important as Carnegie Hall. You try to work out all the little problems. Once that's all done, trust comes in. Itzhak Perlman trust work-out play Same thing with harmonies. If you hear something that harmonically is interesting, express it. So that's what I'm saying about talking the music rather than just playing through. Itzhak Perlman harmony talking interesting Don't play the way it goes. Play the way it is. And the way it is every time you play it, it's slightly different. Look for something. So that's the challenge not to be bored. Itzhak Perlman bored challenges play
