5 minutes with ... Dave Brubeck.(Interview)

Pianist and prolific composer Dave Brubeck has been dubbed a "living legend" by the Library of Congress. Born in 1920, Brubeck began piano at age 4 and went on to study composition with Darius Milhaud. His extensive discography and publications include jazz standards, such as "Take Five" and "Blue Rondo a la Turk."

Do you ever get tired of playing Take Five? Your fans always expect it.

That's like asking me if I get tired of seeing my wife after over 60 years of marriage. If I disliked Take Five I would have quit playing it long ago. After all, we play it differently each time. That's jazz.

What composition would you most like to be remembered for?

Again, that's like asking which of your identical twins you think is the most beautiful.

In a performing career that has spanned some 60 years, are there certain performances or venues that stand out? You've played for how many presidents, princes and potentates?

Of all the different presidents and potentates for whom I have performed, I think the most memorable was performing portions of my mass and a commissioned piece written especially for Pope John Paul II, in Candlestick Park, San Francisco, during the Pope's American visit in 1987. I have played at the White House for almost every president since John F. Kennedy. Sometimes, the official guest at the White House dinner would be a leader from a foreign country, such as King Hussein of Jordan or the president of Uruguay. I played in Moscow at the Reagan and Gorbachev Summit. Also, I performed with the London Symphony in the presence of Prince Charles and Princess Di and more recently, again with the London Symphony, when Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip were present.