“More so than with any other instrument, the violin becomes part of the body. Good musicians are physically dissolved when playing, and for violinists, who cannot see where to place their fingers and have nothing to guide them through touch, music must be more than ever about memory than fingertips and breath; the ventage is deeper, more of the self, closer to singing.”

“There are times when we need the rocket fuel of singing and dancing to power us through an act of blind faith. Falling in love is one of those times, when we need to move into a phase of enchantment with enough force so that when things cool and the air clears, we are locked into that person, that love. We fall in love and we sing as we walk down the street; we turn up the music and dance.”

“When children meet other children, they have to do something -- fight or play.”

“Being a woman seemed to mean listening to the music boys liked and neither dancing nor singing along.”

“Why did girls never play air guitar? Did we sing along because singing was what girls did or was it that girls only sang because they didn't play air guitar? These are not questions I asked myself at the time. I was pushing away such complications.”

“If you don't hear this kind of music [pop] at the right time, can it ever make sense to you?”

“If I had not kissed anyone, or danced with anyone, or had a reason to cry, the music made me feel as if I had gone through all that anyway.”