Top 40 Quotes & Sayings by Jose Carreras

Your real feelings are inside you.

I am a little nervous with strangers. But I'm not tight inside. I think I am impulsive.

When you arrive at a certain level it's very easy to say yes: that is the moment to learn to say no.

It's logical for us to sing, but not necessarily operatic pieces.

I have great emotion every time I go on stage. Nothing in life gives me the same satisfaction that my profession gives me.

If you are burned, you are naturally anxious to see what your face looks like as soon as they take the bandages off. In my case, it was my voice that was my main concern.

I'm a very fortunate man. I have in life everything I could dream of.

I carry on singing because I love it. The closer you are to the end, the more you understand how important it is.

Italians have no sense of the dramatic.

Even out of severe difficulty, some positive things come.

Yes, you must have the courage of being free.

I cannot imagine stopping singing. It is so nice that I even do it as a hobby.

I love good food but I follow strict rules the days I perform.

In certain professions, you can love your profession; you can do it in a very professional way and do it wonderfully, but you do not have this possibility to communicate with others - I express myself singing, and I think this is a real luxury.

I am an optimist and have always been one.

I can't see why we can't toss in a Junior Walker or Wilson Pickett number in every once in a while.

Music isn't only a profession.

It is important to be passionate, but it is also important to combine the heart and the head. I have made mistakes in both my private and professional lives.

In recitals, you are naked before the audience - well, naked with your jacket and tails. The audience sees and hears the real person, not some role you are interpreting.

People naturally want to know about what happened, about my leukemia. They ask the same questions again and again. And there have been so many positive conclusions, even through the bad times, that I don't mind at all to be reminded of my struggles.

Yes, thanks to God... my life has a goal, much more important than my artistic activities, that is the struggle against Leukemia.

The happiest moment in my life? When my doctor told me I was completely cured of leukemia.

If I can do concert recitals, adapting the repertoire to my needs, then no problem, that's good enough. But with operas, unless the right circumstances come up, my career is done.

It is not easy for me to sing consonants, and I am sorry if I don't sing the 'S'.

Everybody, even me, sometimes had to compromise on something, doing things we know to be wrong, and this happens doing whatever job in the world. But a singer must have the courage of saying no.

At first we got along real well. Now... it's pretty much just a professional relationship.

Certain things give you another perspective in life.

What originates everything are the emotions, the feelings, what we call soul. Then the brain commands these feelings to the voice. The voice is just the vehicle; it's the very last step in the chain.

I am always living very good moments.

If a man becomes more mature due to certain episodes in his life, it gives him the opportunity to look at life in a much more deep way. I believe the artist and the man work parallel, with the same feelings, the same soul, the same sensitivity.

I've always said that music is like literature.

I have a wonderful shelter, which is my family. I have a wonderful relationship with my brother and sister; this makes me feel that I know always where I belong.

I've always been a big fan of the American soul sound.

The voice is like a man, like ourselves: we all feel melancholic about what we have lost, the things we could do when we were young. But having the possibility to still perform is wonderful. The voice loses elasticity as you age, but on the other hand, maybe you are more mature as an interpreter, maybe your approach to singing deepens.

Americans, they have an incredible operatic tradition: the Metropolitan Opera House is - if not the most prestigious - one of the most prestigious opera houses in the world for over 100 years.

I am extraordinarily lucky, I was born in a family of strong moral values, and in my life I was able to do what I liked best: debuts, great theatres, but above all, inner and deep satisfaction.

I have thrown chairs, but only during football matches. Generally, I am well-behaved. I do not like to make people angry.

When I sing, I want people to think only about the tenor and only about the music.

The happiest moment in my life? When my doctor told me I was completely cured of leukaemia.

In the last 20, 22 years I have sung here very often and I have always felt the affection and warmth of the Italians, and I feel very close to you.