INSPIRATIONS

To learn from, amuse and inspire...

"If I don't practice one day, I know it; two days, the critics know it; three days, the public knows it." ~ Jascha Heifetz

"There is no such thing as perfection, there are only standards. And after you have set a standard you learn that it was not high enough. You want to surpass it." ~ Jascha Heifetz

"There is no top. There are always further heights to reach." ~ Jascha Heifetz

"Criticism does not disturb me, for I am my own severest critic. Always in my playing I strive to surpass myself, and it is this constant struggle that makes music fascinating to me." ~ Jascha Heifetz

"The violinist is that peculiarly human phenomenon distilled to a rare potency---half tiger,half poet." ~ Yehudi Menuhin

"In all teaching there must be a fusion of authority as an adult providing a stable framework for the children in one's care, and humility as another human being ready to educate an equal who may turn out to be a superior." ~ Yehudi Menuhin

"It's no use practicing too much. First you have to find out how to do it best. You have to be able to invent ways of doing better. Not only practice; obviously you have to practice. But to invent things how to do better. If somebody doesn't know what invention means, he should stop violin playing! You can't explain everything... Not practicing only: Think how to achieve quality." ~ Nathan Milstein

"Exactness of intention produces elegance of style." ~ Nathan Milstein

"Art begins where technique ends. There can be no real art development before one's technique is firmly established. And a great deal of technical work has to be done before the great works of violin literature, the sonatas and concertos, may be approached." ~ Leopold Auer

"A worker without genius is better than a genius who won't work." ~ Leopold Auer

"How do I get to Carnegie Hall?" ~ Mischa Elman

"If children hear fine music from the day of their birth and learn to play it, they develop sensitivity, discipline and endurance. They get a beautiful heart." ~ Shinichi Suzuki

"Music is the language of the heart without words." ~ Shinichi Suzuki

"A teacher who is only interested in great talents is like a man who only seeks the company of rich people." ~ Carl Flesch

"One must always practice slowly. If you learn something slowly, you forget it slowly." ~ Itzhak Perlman

"Never miss an opportunity to teach; when you teach others, you teach yourself." ~ Itzhak Perlman

"The most important thing to do is really listen." ~ Itzhak Perlman

"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

"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

"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

"Everybody has a different kind of talent and a different timetable as to when they develop." ~ Itzhak Perlman

"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

"You decide to be a musician, you have to put in the time." ~ Itzhak Perlman

"It's important to give kids an opportunity to see what the world is about, and music is a fantastic friend." ~ Pinchas Zukerman

"Music is the thousandth of a millisecond between one note and another; how you get from one to the other-that's where the music is." ~ Isaac Stern

"I have a responsibility to pass on to the next generation what I learned from my teachers, ... It keeps me young and reminds me where I came from. Teaching young artists is like giving water to a flower." ~ Isaac Stern

"When you believe in something, you can move mountains." ~ Isaac Stern

"It is only through failure and through experiment that we learn and grow." ~ Isaac Stern

"There are some days I take my violin out and it feels dreadful, like nothing is responding, and I want to sell it and get rid of it. And the next day suddenly the skies open up and the sound is glorious again. So it's like a relationship: There are good days and bad days." ~ Joshua Bell

"Music plays a huge role in the movie. The music in Star Wars, I can't imagine what the movie would have been like without it. It made the film." ~ Joshua Bell

To my pupils who are fortunate enough to have parents who’ve invested in wonderful instruments for them to work with every day:

"I open up my violin case every day, and have one of the great creations. It is very inspiring. It makes you want to practice. How can you open up a case and look at a violin that was made in 1713 by one of the greatest artists in history and then say, "No, I don't feel like practicing today."" ~ Joshua Bell

"Of course the most difficult thing on the violin is always intonation. The second one is rhythm. If you play in tune, in time with a good sound that's already high level. Those three are the main things." ~ Ruggiero Ricci

"You have to do a lot of listening, you don't just learn out of yourself." ~ Ruggiero Ricci