Herbie Hancock Quotes
-
In World War II, jazz absolutely was the music of freedom, and then in the Cold War, behind the Iron Curtain, same thing. It was all underground, but they needed the food of freedom that jazz offered.
-
I don't go around, the way many musicians do, with earbuds in my ear listening to my iPod all day and just sticking my head in the music all the time.
-
I don't look at music from the standpoint of being a musician; I look at it from the standpoint of being a human being.
-
It might be something as simple as saying the right word to the right person at the right time-and that could change the course of history. You never really know. But the whole thing is to work at the process of being in sync with the universe, so that everything will align at the proper time so that you can deliver that which is your life mission. And that's why we're here as individuals. And then there's our contribution to the collective. It makes a lot of sense, doesn't it?
-
Oscar Peterson is the greatest living influence on jazz pianists today.
-
Jazz is about being in the moment.
-
Globalization means we have to re-examine some of our ideas, and look at ideas from other countries, from other cultures, and open ourselves to them. And that's not comfortable for the average person.
-
So I didn't actually change my name the way some people did.
-
You can expand, repeat, even change keys and do other things electronically to give certain elements and phrases more cohesiveness.
-
I'm one of the people who was a pioneer in encouraging musicians, early in the game, to get interested in technology, and now all the musicians are getting into it.
-
We need to put into practice the idea of embracing other cultures. We need to be shaping the kind of world we want to live in instead of waiting for someone else or some other entities to do it for us.
-
The Internet opens up a whole new range of possibilities in a wide range of areas.
-
One thing that attracted me to Buddhism was the support for this larger vision of values.
-
It's not exclusive, but inclusive, which is the whole spirit of jazz.
-
Most people define themselves by what they do - 'I'm a musician.' Then one day it occurred to me that I'm only a musician when I'm playing music - or writing music, or talking about music. I don't do that 24 hours a day. I'm also a father, a son, a husband, a citizen - I mean, when I go to vote, I'm not thinking of myself as 'a musician.'
-
The true artform is being a human being.
-
Jazz translates the moment into a sense of inspiration for not only the musicians but for the listeners.
-
Clare Fischer was a major influence on my harmonic concept. He and Bill Evans, and Ravel and Gil Evans, finally. You know, that's where it really came from. Almost all of the harmony that I play can be traced to one of those four people and whoever their influences were.
-
The spirit of jazz is the spirit of openness.
-
Of course, it's not the technique that makes the music; it's the sensitivity of the musician and his ability to be able to fuse his life with the rhythm of the times. This is the essence of music.
-
I hope to use dialogue and culture as a means of bringing people of various cultures together, and using that as a way to resolve conflict.
-
Creativity shouldn't be following radio; it should be the other way around.
-
I try to practice with my life.
-
It's part of my nature. I get excited when trying out new stuff, whether it be an idea or equipment. It stimulates my juices.