Music isn't about music, it's about life.
Herbie HancockRead
Jazz is about being in the moment.
Interpretation
Jazz emphasizes living in the present and embracing spontaneity.
Herbie Hancock's quote underscores the essence of jazz music, which is centered around improvisation and being fully engaged in the moment. This reflects a broader life philosophy of appreciating the now, rather than being overly concerned with past or future.
In practice
During a music workshop, I quoted Herbie Hancock to emphasize the importance of improvisation.
Music isn't about music, it's about life.
I don't mind being classified as a jazz artist, but I do mind being restricted to being a jazz artist. My foundation has been in jazz, though I didn't really start out that way. I started in classical music, but my formative years were in jazz, and it makes a great foundation.
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 think people have learned that Herbie Hancock can be defined as someone that you won't be able to figure out what he's going to do next. The sky is the limit as far as I'm concerned.
One thing that sticks in my mind is that jazz means freedom and openness. It's a music that, although it developed out of the African American experience, speaks more about the human experience than the experience of a particular people.
I started off with classical music, and I got into jazz when I was about 14 years old. And I've been playing jazz ever since.
I'm saying: to be continued, until we meet again. Meanwhile, keep on listening and tapping your feet.
When I go to the Gate, I'll play a duet with Gabriel. Yeah, we'll play 'Sleepy Time Down South' and 'Hello, Dolly!.' Then he can blow a couple that he's been playing up there all the time.
We may be sure that a genius like Mozart, were he born today, would write concertos like Chopin and not like Mozart.
I only hope that one day, America will recognize what the rest of the world already has known, that our indigenous music - gospel, blues, jazz and R&B - is the heart and soul of all popular music; and that we cannot afford to let this legacy slip into obscurity, I'm telling you.
This is what I want everyone to experience at the end of my concert... _x000D_ everyone has this sense of rejoicing. _x000D_ I don't want them to be blown away by what I do, _x000D_ I want them to have this sense of real, real joy _x000D_ from the depths of their being. _x000D_ Because I think when you take them to that place, _x000D_ then you open up a place where grace can come in.
Hip-hop, pop, dance - the common point is melancholy. That's international, and I like this word because it's not only about sadness or happiness - it's both at the same time. And that's human, and that's life.
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