Leonard Slatkin Quotes

• We need music to restore the human spirit

  Leonard Slatkin

  Needs, Spirit, Humans

  7 Copy quote

• The role of an orchestra in the 21st century isn't just playing, it's about developing future audiences and performers.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Orchestra, Roles, Century

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• An orchestra knows during the first two minutes of the first rehearsal whether or not they are going to enjoy the person on the podium.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Two, Orchestra, Rehearsal

  "Star-Spangled Baton?" by Leonard Slatkin, www.huffingtonpost.com. May 20, 2013.

  4 Copy quote

• There is no 'perfect' in music. If I ever came off the stage and felt it could not be better, it would then be time to quit.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Perfect, Quitting, Stage

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• I am usually cooking at least four times a week if I am home. The easiest thing that I do a lot is gazpacho. It's simple and it tastes best if you let it sit over night in the refrigerator... I don't want anybody near me when I am cooking. If I am going to make a mistake, it has to be my fault.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Mistake, Home, Simple

  4 Copy quote

• The life of any musician really doesn't fall into a normal schedule at all. Every week there are different rehearsals, different days and nights of performances, so we don't have a particular pattern that we can follow. For a conductor, it is a little bit worse because we have to allow for traveling.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Fall, Night, Schedules

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• I use my hands like a sculptor, to mold and shape the sound I want, to clarify.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Hands, Mold, Sound

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• In some ways I believe music is the more convincing communicator of ideas than words. For instance, we can hear of Kordaly and Bartok and recognise them as Hungarian, but very few of us speak Hungarian, but the music itself speaks to more people.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Believe, Ideas, People

  4 Copy quote

• I've come to the conclusion that a long personal relationship is next to impossible for me. Ultimately, music is a possessive mistress.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Long, Mistress, Next

  "Star-spangled Promenader" by Nicholas Wroe, www.theguardian.com. July 13, 2001.

  4 Copy quote

• I'm not particularly lucid after a concert. I'm not very lucid before, either.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Concerts

  4 Copy quote

• I'll know I'm reaching the total American market when I'm asked to do a video for MTV.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Mtv, Video, Reaching

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• I'm beginning to see that just knowing the piece is not enough. Having a clear technique is not enough. Having a broad repertory is not enough. I want desperately to get past all those things.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Past, Knowing, Technique

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• I knew I could never match my father as a violinist, and there were already four generations of outstanding cellists in the family.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Father, Generations, Four

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• My first strong musical memory is of the Villa-Lobos Sixth Quartet which my parents were rehearsing. I remember that it reminded me of big teddy bears dancing around.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Strong, Memories, Dancing

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• I don't really think about retiring. I will retire just before people start saying, 'I knew Leonard Slatkin when he conducted well.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Thinking, People, Retiring

  4 Copy quote

• Ultimately, music is a possessive mistress.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Mistress, Music Is, Possessive

  "Star-spangled Promenader". Interview with Nicholas Wroe, www.theguardian.com. July 13, 2001.

  4 Copy quote

• The convergence of the Rhone and Saone. Paul Bocuse. The birthplace of cinema. Chateauneuf-du-Pape just a few miles down the road. It does not get much better than Lyon.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Birth Place, Doe, Cinema

  7 Copy quote

• The conductor is the artistic leader and sometimes cultural arbiter of his or her community. It is their leadership that is looked to and should anything go wrong, they are the persons taking most of the heat.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Community, Leader, Anything Goes

  "Star-Spangled Baton?" by Leonard Slatkin, www.huffingtonpost.com. May 20, 2013.

  4 Copy quote

• Randy Newman and I grew up together in Los Angeles. We are both products of the film studio era. Randy is one of the great songwriters of our time and one of the fun people to be with.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Fun, People, Together

  4 Copy quote

• People know Detroit for the cars, but the suburban areas of the city are really beautiful. It's much more inhabitable than people think. Many believe it's like Berlin at the end of World War II.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Beautiful, War, Believe

  4 Copy quote

• Over the years it has been my privilege to lead performances with Saint Louis, the National Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra and so many other wonderful organizations.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Years, Organization, Symphony

  Leonard Slatkin (2017). “Leading Tones: Reflections on Music, Musicians, and the Music Industry”, p.200, Hal Leonard Corporation

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• I have been long associated with British music. I have favoured it as my alternate music next to American.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Long, Next, British

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• There's not an orchestra in the world that doesn't have weaknesses. None of us can play everything well. The repertoire is just too big.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Play, Weakness, World

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• A music director cannot and should not be chosen on the basis of a first date. It is not so difficult to make a good impression with a single appearance, usually containing some of a conductor's party pieces, works they have performed successfully many times before.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Party, Pieces, Firsts

  "Star-Spangled Baton?" by Leonard Slatkin, www.huffingtonpost.com. May 20, 2013.

  4 Copy quote

• We are a global society, and one does not have to be from Germany to give a great performance of Beethoven.

  Leonard Slatkin

  Giving, Doe, Germany

  "Star-Spangled Baton?" by Leonard Slatkin, www.huffingtonpost.com. May 20, 2013.

  4 Copy quote

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