Lee Konitz's Quotes
Born: 1927-10-13
Profession: Musician
Nation: American
Biography of Lee Konitz
Labels don't mean anything to me. I'm trying to play as passionately as I'm able to. If they want to call that cool, that's fine. Just spell the name right, is the formula.
Tags: Cool, Mean, TryingYou just keep playing. If someone special comes along and organizes it in a new way, then you'll have another approach and everybody will jump on it to try to learn.
Tags: Someone, Special, TryAs long as there are people trying to play music in a sincere way, there will be some jazz.
Tags: Jazz, Music, TryingBenny Goodman was one of the big influences as a clarinet player. That's why I wanted the clarinet.
Tags: Big, Wanted, WhyI always felt as a horn player, a jam session wasn't satisfying enough for me. I should have been a rhythm section player, actually.
Tags: Actually, Enough, FeltI have been able to get a small audience. It's not the huge audience, but it's enough to make it possible to play. I appreciate that.
Tags: Able, Enough, SmallI listen to classical music very much. There's a lot of jazz that I don't enjoy listening to.
Tags: Enjoy, Listen, MusicI understood that if I wanted to work, the saxophone was the main instrument. The clarinet was what we call a double.
Tags: Call, Wanted, WorkI'd like to feel that whatever I play is a result of whatever I've heard.
Tags: Heard, Result, WhateverIn some ways Lester Young is the most complex rhythmically of any musician. He does some things which are just phenomenal.
Tags: Complex, Ways, YoungIt was 100 percent music. There was no ego involved, no attitudes, no black and white, it was pure music.
Tags: Black, Ego, MusicMany people do think it's naive to improvise in front of paying customers. I'm not saying one way is better than another.
Tags: Another, Naive, SayingMost jazz players work out their solos, at least to the extent that they have a very specific vocabulary.
Tags: Jazz, Players, WorkNames and theoretical things don't occur to me. If they do, I'm not doing my real playing mode.
Tags: Names, Playing, RealOut of Coltrane's whole history, there are things which I think are great from all the periods.
Tags: Great, History, WholeWe all learn from each other, and I never really hung out with guys in that way, so I missed out.
Tags: Guys, Learn, MissedVisit partners pages
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After playing now for 60 years, it's still very challenging for me to play a simple melody and have it clean and touch the reed at the proper time in the proper way.
Tags: After, Simple, TimeBernstein grew up in my building in New York. He's a very, very fine player. When he was a kid, he came by to find out what was going on in the world of jazz.
Tags: Fine, Kid, Player