I saw McCoy give a master class once in Winston Salem, NC. his trio was playing that night at a local college. My friend and I drove 3 hours to catch the clinic and show. There weren't that many people at the clinic, he played some solo piano, talked about music, and asked if anyone had any questions for him. I was a college kid, so I raised my hand, and asked "did you always have your harmonic conception?"

I'll never forget his answer. He said "Young man, I had the seed of something, and everyone here does, too. But, it's like a flower, you have to water it, care for it, and also let it grow. You can't expect it to flourish on its own".

This was in the late 90s and I can still kinda hear him saying this. What an incredible positive force in the world.