Quotes By Evelyn Glennie

There are many collaborations I'd like to explore. One is to co-write a rap concerto with Eminem.

Percussion is physical, as most instruments are. The body must function well in order to play the instruments well. Last year I climbed Mount Kilimanjaro.

A large part of my work has been collaborating with composers; I think we've commissioned about 140 pieces now, a lot of them percussion concertos.

The audience plays a huge part in how a piece will actually form. They really allow the performers to walk a tightrope in a way that never seems to happen in the privacy of your own four walls. I'm listening to the audience, and they're listening to me.

My hearing is out of the ordinary as others might see it, but not for me. I'm used to my hearing in the same way that I'm used to the size of my hands.

If I just simply let go, and allow my hand, my arm, to be more of a support system, suddenly - I have more dynamic with less effort. Much more, and I just feel, at last, one with the stick, and one with the drum.

I associate going to an airport with work because I travel so much with my job. So when I have a few days free from work, I tend to stay at home.

I think I can only help to expose percussion to all sorts of people. The balance between the lighter and more serious side is important.

Once you're in a particular country, and you're surrounded by musicians who are so adept at traditional music, you suddenly realize how much there is to explore and digest and learn and experience.

Your mallet or your stick goes through the instrument, the sound goes out and then wherever the sound goes nobody knows, you know.

Music really is our daily medicine.

Concerts have to be seen as a real event for which the aim is to try and feed everybody.

There's still a lot I need to do as a player, as a musician, as a sound creator. I have commissioned 170 pieces: that's still not enough, there are still lots and lots of composers I would like to approach. When I see a composer and I see a performer, I think to combine those forces.

The human body and mind are tremendous forces that are continually amazing scientists and society. Therefore, we have no choice but to keep an open mind as to what the human being can achieve.

Hearing is a form of touch. You feel it through your body, and sometimes it almost hits your face.

I want to be able to say on my deathbed that I reached a few people. That would be very nice, just to be able to say that.

When I was 12, I happened to see a schoolmate playing percussion, and it looked interesting. I asked for lessons, and it felt right.

Holidays are about experiences and people, and tuning into what you feel like doing at that moment. Enjoy not having to look at a watch.