Toots Thielemans

The harmonica is a great instrument.

My father bought me a little cardboard accordion, and when I was three I got this little machine.

And if I have a strong point, it's that I like to believe it's not cheap or schmaltzy sentimentality.

Well, being a jazz musician is not a rose garden!

Today jazz is still very much alive. Everywhere I go there's a new generation of musicians.

You can be in Tokyo or Alberta at four in the morning in your hotel and you can still practice if you feel like it. A trombone cannot do that at four in the morning.

My parents had a pub and each Sunday there was an accordionist. They have told me that when I was in my cradle, I already was imitating the gestures of the musician.