I put my mother through a lot when I was a teenager. I used to lie a lot. Now, we talk all the time. Esperanza Spalding Read Quote
I write at the piano, so I write things that fit comfortably under my hands, and I’m not thinking in terms of any specific compositional methods. I’m just seeking sounds. Esperanza Spalding Read Quote
For what I can imagine and feel and think and hear, I can hardly do anything on the acoustic bass. It used to be just pure frustration of imagining so much more and being able to get to a certain level of execution. Esperanza Spalding Read Quote
You don’t have to be fearless to do anything; you can be scared out of your mind. I fear that I won’t get better and that I won’t have time to practice. To be called a ‘jazz musician’ – it’s a big responsibility. Esperanza Spalding Read Quote
And I feel that it’s inevitable that the work that I do will reflect the life that I live. And the life I live feels very diverse. Esperanza Spalding Read Quote
I just want to say, if you’re going crazy, take a break. I felt overwhelmed by stuff that wasn’t satisfying me, things I was supposed to do for my career. I stopped and said, ‘Let me get back to the basics.’ Esperanza Spalding Read Quote
There’s nothing wrong with struggle. Anytime I look back at a difficult phase of my life and see what grew out of it – the creative survival tactics – I think that the good is way better than the bad. Esperanza Spalding Read Quote
