23+ Lee Konitz Quotes On Education, Music And Art

Lee Konitz is an American jazz composer and alto saxophonist. He is known for his cool jazz style and has collaborated with many of the greats in jazz, including Miles Davis and Lennie Tristano. He is also a member of the Cool Jazz Quartet and has released numerous solo albums. Following is our collection on famous quotes by Lee Konitz on life, education, music.

Top 10 Lee Konitz Quotes

1. I understood that if I wanted to work, the saxophone was the main instrument. The clarinet was what we call a double.
2. Benny Goodman was one of the big influences as a clarinet player. That's why I wanted the clarinet.
3. In some ways Lester Young is the most complex rhythmically of any musician. He does some things which are just phenomenal.
4. I love Indian music very much, but I haven't studied that specifically.
5. I always felt as a horn player, a jam session wasn't satisfying enough for me. I should have been a rhythm section player, actually.
6. I could stop and say, Well that was a D minor, G seven, but I really don't want to know that. I just want to know that there's a combination of notes that makes a sound.
7. As long as there are people trying to play music in a sincere way, there will be Jazz.
8. 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.
9. I'd like to feel that whatever I play is a result of whatever I've heard.
10. You 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.

Lee Konitz Short Quotes

• Out of Coltrane's whole history, there are things which I think are great from all the periods.
• That's kind of my goal: to build a new row of meaningful tones.
• Names and theoretical things don't occur to me. If they do, I'm not doing my real playing mode.
• We all learn from each other, and I never really hung out with guys in that way, so I missed out.

Lee Konitz Quotes About Music

I listen to classical music very much. There's a lot of jazz that I don't enjoy listening to. — Lee Konitz

Sound is the first thing that we tune into. — Lee Konitz

Most jazz players work out their solos, at least to the extent that they have a very specific vocabulary. — Lee Konitz

It's very demanding to make up your own music. — Lee Konitz

Lee Konitz Famous Quotes And Sayings

Bernstein 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. — 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. — Lee Konitz

I just completed a tour in Europe. I played every night. This requires traveling some days for six hours in a van or a train or a car. After six weeks of that, I checked into the hotel and just fell apart. — Lee Konitz

Many people do think it's naive to improvise in front of paying customers. I'm not saying one way is better than another. — Lee Konitz

I 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. — Lee Konitz

Life Lessons by Lee Konitz

1. Lee Konitz's work demonstrates the importance of improvisation and exploration in jazz music, emphasizing the need to be creative and open to new ideas.
2. He was an innovator in the jazz world, pushing the boundaries of the genre and creating a unique sound.
3. His compositions and performances serve as a reminder that experimentation and risk-taking can lead to great rewards in music.