The difference between a very good musician and a great artist

As I sat in my office transcribing this interview, I played the CD 'Live in Japan' (Deutsche Grammophon, 2001) with Mischa Maisky and Martha Argerich. The thought struck me that if a writer had invented a cellist like Maisky, he would have been accused of not being realistic. Certainly he is not what you would call a 'run-of-the-mill' personality and I must confess he had me worrying after he took 13 minutes to answer my first simple question. But as I re-read it, it seems like an overture of candor and captures the reader almost unconsciously for its human interest. When somebody touches me as an artist, I experience the desire to investigate his genius, to find clues about his origins. Everything seems interesting: his ideas, experiences, important dates, knowledge, the anecdotes, jokes, opinions, and of course all his successes and…