Don't Be A Perfectionist... Leave That To

Over The Years I've Had Strong Friendships With Many Priests. As A Matter Of Fact, A Group Of Christian Leaders From The National Council Of Churches Came To My House In The 1950s To Ask Me To Write Music For A Mass. I Didn't Think I Was Ready At That Time. So, In A Sense, I Guess Joining The Church And Writing The Mass Was A Culmination Of A Long Journey That Is Still Going On.

When I Was 20, Shostakovich Was My Favorite Composer. I Still Find His Fifth Symphony Wonderful, With Its Outstanding Themes And Rhythms. That's The Piece That Made Me Want To Be A Classical Composer.

I Prefer No One To Teach Me. I Prefer To Swing On My Own.

I Used To Take My Mother To Yosemite. When I Turned 14, I Got My Driver's License, And That's Where She'd Want To Go, So I'd Go Take Her There For Two Weeks.

When Things Are Going Well, I Hate To Quit.