I don't really think about retiring. I will retire just before people start saying, 'I knew Leonard Slatkin when he conducted well.'

Ultimately, music is a possessive mistress.

My first strong musical memory is of the Villa-Lobos Sixth Quartet which my parents were rehearsing. I remember that it reminded me of big teddy bears dancing around.

We need music to restore the human spirit

I'll play you one of my favorites, and you play me one of yours.

The stories behind the music make it come alive for kids,

NSO management made the recommendation to the executive committee of the board, who made the appointment.

To my mind and ear, there is simply nothing that compares to the musical sophistication of a late Beethoven, Bartok, Schubert or Brahms work for minimal forces.

The life of any musician really doesn't fall into a normal schedule at all. Every week there are different rehearsals, different days and nights of performances, so we don't have a particular pattern that we can follow. For a conductor, it is a little bit worse because we have to allow for traveling.

Over the years it has been my privilege to lead performances with Saint Louis, the National Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra and so many other wonderful organizations.