Creativity Quote by Cecilia Bartoli

Bartoli flips the usual power fantasy of artistry on its head: the virtuoso as sovereign gives way to the body as employer. "My voice is my boss" lands because it refuses the romantic myth that great performers simply will themselves into greatness. Instead, it frames craft as a negotiation with a living instrument that has boundaries, moods, and consequences. The kicker is the pronoun: "She decides". By gendering the voice, Bartoli turns it into a character with agency, not a tool to be exploited. It is affectionate, but also faintly stern - like a matriarch who keeps you honest.

The intent is practical and quietly polemical. For an opera singer, "listening" isn't vague self-care language; it's career survival. Repertoire choices, touring schedules, even when to talk at a party all have physiological stakes. In a field that rewards spectacle and punishes vulnerability, Bartoli signals a counter-ethic: discipline over bravado, longevity over short-term triumph.

The subtext also needles the industry's hunger for control. Managers, conductors, critics, and audiences all want more: higher, louder, riskier, younger. Bartoli's line draws a boundary without sounding defensive. If the voice is the boss, then external demands become secondary to an internal authority that can't be argued with. It's a sly way of asserting autonomy while sounding humble - a performer claiming power by admitting she doesn't have it.