Joan Sutherland

“I'm a very placid person. I'm a peaceful person. I never get angry. I never shout.”

“My voice is not so much an instrument as an organ that either functions or it doesn't.”

“If I'm in the middle of a Mozart concerto, it's not the time to be thinking about whether I've got my shopping list for the weekend.”

“I think I've had a very good life, and I've been very, very lucky. And I've worked very hard.”

“You just can't say, 'Oh, I'm going to be a singer.' You've got to work at it. You've got to study. You've got to be dedicated.”

“You have to be very careful with your voice. It's a very delicate instrument.”

“The audience is the final judge.”

“I don't think I'm a natural actress, but I'm a good mimic.”

“You can't be a diva and a star. The star is on the stage, and the diva is in her dressing room.”

“The main thing in a bel canto opera is the singers, and if they're not there, you're not there.”