If you send up a weather vane or put your thumb up in the air every time you want to do something different, to find out what people are going to think about it, you're going to limit yourself. That's a very strange way to live.
Jessye NormanRead
As for my voice, it cannot be categorised - and I like it that way, because I sing things that would be considered in the dramatic, mezzo or spinto range.
Interpretation
Jessye Norman embraces her unique vocal range, celebrating its complexity and diversity.
In this quote, Jessye Norman expresses her appreciation for the richness and individuality of her voice, which defies easy categorization into traditional singing classifications. By highlighting the variety within her vocal capabilities, she emphasizes the beauty of being unconventional and the artistic freedom that comes with it.
In practice
During a speech at a music school graduation, to inspire students to embrace their unique talents.
If you send up a weather vane or put your thumb up in the air every time you want to do something different, to find out what people are going to think about it, you're going to limit yourself. That's a very strange way to live.
My parents said to us, practically on a daily basis, that we were as good as anyone else on this earth, and that we would simply have to work harder in order to show that.
Problems arise in that one has to find a balance between what people need from you and what you need for yourself.
I am grateful that my horizons were not narrowed at the outset.
It is still more likely that a woman's power would be seen as aggression, and a man's power would be seen as assertion.
I love singing jazz. I don't like the idea that classical music should be over here and jazz should be someplace else. It's all wonderful, and we should be open to enjoying it all.
I always saw hurdles as a form of art, because it's very individual. One technique that may produce a world record for one guy could be useless for another guy.
I try to make my music interesting to me first, then hopefully other people will find it interesting, too.
the whole purport of literature...is the notation of the heart. Style is but the faintly contemptible vessel in which the bitter liquid is recommended to the world.
The most important thing is you can't write what you wouldn't read for pleasure. It's a mistake to analyze the market thinking you can write whatever is hot. You can't say you're going to write romance when you don't even like it. You need to write what you would read if you expect anybody else to read it.
A method of painting is a natural growth out of a need. I want to express my feelings rather than illustrate them. Technique is just a means of arriving at a statement.
Sometimes female characters start out as the wife or girlfriend, but then I realize, 'No, she's the book,' and she becomes a main character. I surrender the book to her.
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