Duke Ellington Quotes on Music
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It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing).
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Playing 'Bop' is like playing Scrabble with all the vowels missing.
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It's like an act of murder; you play with intent to commit something.
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Roaming through the jungle of 'oohs' and 'ahs,' searching for a more agreeable noise, I live a life of primitivity with the mind of a child and an unquenchable thirst for sharps and flats.
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If it sounds good, it IS good.
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There's two kinds of music: good and bad. I like both.
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By and large, jazz has always been like the kind of a man you wouldn't want your daughter to associate with.
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I am a bandleader and I am a composer. I am not a teacher.
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I like any and all of my associations with music- writing, playing, and listening. We write and play from our perspective, and the audience listens from its perspective. If and when we agree, I am lucky.
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I live with music.
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I merely took the energy it takes to pout and wrote some blues.
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My biggest kick in music-playing or writing-is when I have a problem. Without a problem to solve, how much interest do you take in anything?
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The wise musicians are those who play what they can master.
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There is hardly any money interest in art, and music will be there when money is gone.
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Jazz is music-Swing is business.