I always find that there is a real communication between voice and violin.
Itzhak Perlman
I have a very simple philosophy. One has to separate the abilities from the disabilities. The fact I cannot walk, that I need crutches or a scooter or whatever it is, has nothing to do with my playing the violin.
Trust your ability!
I actually wanted to play the violin before I had polio, and then afterwards, there was no reason not to.
The difference is that with Ebola, it is such a devastating disease, and there is still no cure. They're still working on vaccines. The fact of the matter with polio, there is a cure; there is a vaccine.
Every person with a disability is an individual.
There are people who are uncanny, who are finished products at a young age. I wasn't, thank God.
A sponge has that much absorbent capability and after a while you can pour water over it and nothing stays.
I don't feel that the conductor has real power. The orchestra has the power, and every member of it knows instantaneously if you're just beating time.
When you live in a small country such as Israel, the dream of any musician is to go abroad.
That's the goal, to survive your gift.
I love to work with young kids.
An amazing gift in a young child is, in some ways, an abnormality.
For every child prodigy that you know about, at least 50 potential ones have burned out before you even heard about them.
I listen to kids play a lot.
Competition can be the most nerve-racking experience. Some people just thrive on it.
The problems of the disabled are unpopular.
As for minimalism, I don't care, don't care, don't care to repeat myself, repeat myself.
In the musician, there is a tendency to have a narrowness. It's all compartmentalized. I am playing the violin; that's all I know, nothing else, no education, no nothing. You just practice every day.
There is no such thing as getting rid of nervousness.
I always find Bach to be an expression of a love of life. There's an enthusiasm that's absolutely contagious.
I am playing the violin, that's all I know, nothing else, no education, no nothing. You just practice every day.
So many things can drive you mad as a child, not only music.
I'm a great sports fan, you know. I love to watch tennis and basketball and baseball and so on.
Life is always full of challenges. I believe you're never happy unless you're consistently making challenges for yourself.
To bring a large audience to a piece of serious music and make it accessible does not mean reducing it in any way. And I've learned that if something is good, even if it is a little difficult, people will get that it is good.
I'm a mushroom freak. I make a mushroom soup where I use maybe six or seven varieties, not just portobello and shiitake, but dried porcini and morels.
Any gifted child can potentially get in real trouble because of the way they are handled.
You get more nervous in front of a lot of people. That's why, when you play a concerto, you play with a small orchestra, in some place where you don't feel that it is as important as Carnegie Hall.
I have always been very proud of my Jewish heritage, which has greatly influenced my music, my world view, and my work as an advocate for individuals whom society often leaves behind.
A talented child will have a schedule that is horrendous. You get up and practice, go to school, practice some more, eat dinner, and then you have homework.
I feel that you always pay when you are a child.
In Paris they have special wheelchairs that go through every doorway. They don't change the doorways, they change the wheelchairs. To hell with the people! If someone weighs a couple more pounds, that's it!
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.
Sometimes you get from the mouth of kids wonderful things.
Child prodigy is a curse because you've got all those terrible possibilities.
That makes classical music work, the ability to improvise.
I look at raising funds for The Perlman Music Program as a challenge and as a way to provide opportunities for people who care about the future of classical music.
Preparing for a future in music is an expensive proposition.
The most important thing to do is really listen.
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.
One of the most important elements in teaching, conducting, and performing, all three, is listening.
I'm now doing three things: concerts, conducting, and teaching, and they each support each other. I learn to see things from different perspectives and listen with different ears. The most important thing that you need to do is really listen.
For people who are really talented, what you don't say becomes extremely important. You have to judge what to say and what to leave alone so you can let the talent develop.
Another thing that I don't like to do is show too much how it goes. I do it once in a blue moon. Sometimes there are lessons when I don't pick up a violin at all.
When you are 8 or 9, you should have a childhood. You should have adolescence. You should go through everything in a normal way.
When I came to the United States, I appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show as a 13-year-old, and I played a Mendelssohn Concerto, and it sounded like a talented 13-year-old with a lot of promise. But it did not sound like a finished product.
My oldest daughter is a pianist; she plays concerts. We play together, also.
A lot of people ask me, 'What is your goal now that you have done everything?' And I always say that my goal is to not be bored by what I do. The only way that I cannot be bored by what I do is if I play something and it's all new to me.
I can tell you that many soloists probably wish they could sit.
