Although I am flexible and ready to take advice, I can't carry an umbrella of thoughts over my head that would distract me and affect my music making.

In this art form, in any art form, generalities are useless.

Essentially, the [New York] Philharmonic is just like any other orchestra-they all have the spirit of kids, and if you scratch away a little of the fatigue and cynicism, out comes a 17-year-old music student again, full of wonder, exuberance and a tremendous love of music.

My temples are only in India. When I am in India, I go to the religious ceremonies.

The private sector is growing so incredibly in India, in every city you have industries for whom building a concert hall would be nothing financially. But they just don't do it.

My family and relatives alone could fill Shanmukhananda Hall in Bombay.

I love the creativity of New York, but I don't enjoy the city - I don't like living here.

The 'New York Times' reviews of my work have been evenly divided - favourable and unfavourable.

I am an Indian, so I do yoga.

In Bombay, we have a fine concert hall. I think it is high time we built venues in Delhi and Calcutta, not only for western music, but also Indian music. It doesn't matter which party is in power; don't you think the capital of India should have a concert hall?

There is a school in Israel called Hand in Hand which I support. There Arab and Jewish students study together on a daily basis.

My father was a trained accountant, a BCom from Sydenham College and a self-taught violinist. In the 1920s, when he was in his teens, he heard a great violinist, Jascha Heifetz, and he was so inspired listening to him that he bought himself a violin, and with a little help from an Italian teacher, he learned to play it.

I endeavor that all orchestras I conduct sound Central European.

After conducting Wagner, Beethoven's triple concerto is like taking an Alka Seltzer.

It seems always to have been difficult to have been a New York Philharmonic conductor because of the nature of New York. We are in direct competition with the great orchestras in the world who come to play in our hall or in Carnegie, and we are constantly compared. I think that 's a good thing.

If North American musicians would only know how uncomfortable life is for European musicians.

I feel that the critic and music director should have such a good relationship they can pick up the phone and call each other any time.

New York is really the place to be; to go to New York, you're going to the center of the world, the lion's den.

I am jealous of all those people who live on the shore of Dal Lake.

Just imagine, the thousands and thousands of concerts that take place every single day, all over the world. And the positive effect that they would have on the people listening. Now imagine a world without this. This void... it is unthinkable.