They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art.
Charlie ParkerRead
Master your instrument. Master the music. And then forget all that bullshit and just play.
Interpretation
To truly express oneself in music, one must first master the technical aspects before allowing creativity to flow freely.
Charlie Parker's quote emphasizes the importance of both technical proficiency and creative freedom in music. He suggests that musicians should first learn and master their instruments and the music theory behind it, but ultimately, the essence of playing music lies in the ability to let go of technical constraints and express oneself authentically and spontaneously.
In practice
During a music workshop, you can use this quote to inspire students to focus on both practice and creativity.
They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art.
If you come on a band tense, you're going to play tense. If you come a little bit foolish, act just a little bit foolish, and let yourself go, better ideas will come.
Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn. They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art.
You've got to learn your instrument. Then, you practice, practice, practice. And then, when you finally get up there on the bandstand, forget all that and just wail.
I kept thinking there's bound to be something else? I could hear it sometimes, but I couldn't play it.
I don't care who likes it or buys it. Because if you use that criterion, Mozart would never have written Don Giovanni, Charlie Parker would have never played anything but swing music.
I remember hearing Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, Big Bill Broonzy, Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley and not really knowing anything about the geography or the culture of the music. But for some reason it did something to me - it resonated.
You know, for most of its life bluegrass has had this stigma of being all straw hats and hay bales and not necessarily the most sophisticated form of music. Yet you can't help responding to its honesty. It's music that finds its way deep into your soul because it's strings vibrating against wood and nothing else.
Nobody taught me to play bottleneck. I just saw it and taught myself. I got an old bottle and steamed the label off, put it on the wrong finger, I basically did everything wrong until I met some of the Blues legends early in my career who taught me another way. I didn't have anyone to tell me women didn't play bottleneck.
I will keep playing as long as my body lets me, and as long as I'm wanted by my listeners. Because music is the only thing that keeps me going.
In a sense, the music business and I haven't always been the best of bedfellows. Artists often have to fight their corner. Your music goes through these filters of record labels and media, and you're hoping you'll find someone who'll help you get your work into the world.
I think people have been obsessed with the wrong question, which is how do we make people pay for music? What if we started asking, how do we let people pay for music?
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