I have often heard the statement made by foreign singers, as a demonstrated fact, that the German artists are artists in feeling indeed, and serious in their devotion, but that their singing is crude.

It always makes me sad when I think of how I saw Wagner wasting his vitality, not only by singing their parts to some of his artists, but acting out the smallest details, and of how few they were who were responsive to his wishes.

Of course, experience strengthens one later.

Musical practice is too young an art in America to warrant a search for men with a conductor's gift.

The travel book is a convenient metaphor for life, with its optimistic beginning or departure, its determined striving, and its reflective conclusion. Journeys change travellers just as a good travel book can change readers.

There is a tendency to feature more actresses on covers, but I'm a big model lover. I grew up watching these models, and they gave me the wish, the need, to work in the fashion industry. I loved watching them - their beauty, the way they worked in front of the camera and that power of transformation, especially in the Seventies.

I test the limits of myself in order to transform myself, but I also take the energy from the audience and transform it.

The Internet has heralded a revolution in our society. It has transformed the way we do business, entertain, communicate, and travel. In many ways, the change has been positive. The web has brought new freedoms, spurred economic growth, and extended the boundaries of knowledge.