James Levine
James Levine

I was lucky that I met the right mentors and teachers at the right moment.

James Levine
James Levine

We're in the midst of an evolution, not a revolution.

James Levine
James Levine

But the important thing is to lie down and fall asleep. That little nap means you wake up fresh again and can continue.

James Levine
James Levine

Most people treat the office manual the way they treat a software manual. They never look at it.

James Levine
James Levine

Everybody blames the culture without taking responsibility.

James Levine
James Levine

A lot of people get impatient with the pace of change.

James Levine
James Levine

More and more couples are having this negotiation or discussion, but I'm still amazed at the number who aren't and where the cultural norm sort of kicks in and they just assume that mom's got to be the one who stays home, not dad.

James Levine
James Levine

If you factor in not just who's doing what at home, but how much more time working fathers are spending on work outside the home, on average they spend two hours more per day outside the home.

James Levine
James Levine

I have a big problem with conductors who gesture a lot.

James Levine
James Levine

I grew up in an era where an orchestra was like a treasure chest.

James Levine
James Levine

Art has never been a popularity contest.

James Levine
James Levine

It wasn't that I ever knew I'd be at the Met for 20 years, or 30 years, or 40 years, or anything like that.

James Levine
James Levine

It was just that we had this phenomenal honeymoon relationship that just kept on going.

James Levine
James Levine

And so, little by little, I gradually divested myself of pretty nearly all of the guest conducting I used to do, because I was at the same time working in the places like the Met, where I could work in this sort of depth.

James Levine
James Levine

It has to be able to play at the maximum expression and communication in every style, and the only way you can do that is - like Verdi said - working with a file, every day, little by little, until the orchestra's collective qualities emerge.

James Levine
James Levine

You try on purpose to get players with different qualities which will rub off on one another.

James Levine
James Levine

I think this orchestra's strengths involve drama and voice.

James Levine
James Levine

There is no relationship between the gestures and what an orchestra will do.

James Levine
James Levine

Where my tastes in music are concerned, I'm a real maximalist.

James Levine
James Levine

It's just that, when the orchestra look at me, I want them to see a completely involved person who reflects what we rehearsed, and whose function is to make it possible for them to do it.