I always thought that the saddest thing would be to have a child who didn't want something so badly that they would do anything to get or achieve it. But I remember how secret my own wanting was: I could never have voiced it -- perhaps I should say I would never have voiced it for by the time I reached adulthood I had experienced disappointment so many times that I knew I had better keep it a secret.

Now that I have achieved what I most deeply wanted--which is, to play a page of Mozart to my own satisfaction--I feel that my job as a teacher is to help young people give voice to their reactions as they learn, as they play music.

One of my young students wanted so badly to play a piece her friend played. But mastery of the piece turned out to be a dead-end street: she couldn't build a house on envy.