Steve Lacy

You have to sound sad first of all, then maybe later you can sound good.

I think it is in collaboration that the nature of art is revealed.

I've been working on the soprano saxophone for 40 years, and the possibilities are astounding. It's up to you, the only limit is the imagination.

Nobody was playing the soprano saxophone and certainly nobody was trying to do anything with it. So I was all alone. I didn't know that at first.

I've performed solo for 20 years now, but I don't do much of it, because if you only play alone, you go crazy and out of tune and play foolish music.

You can work on the saxophone alone, but ultimately you must perform with others.