Lee Konitz

Sound is the first thing that we tune into.

I’d like to feel that whatever I play is a result of whatever I’ve heard.

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

As long as there are people trying to play music in a sincere way, there will be Jazz.

If you play a tune and a person don’t tap their feet, don’t play the tune.

Good music is good music and everything else can go to hell.

It’s not uncomfortable for me to be a sideman, but I feel more comfortable as a bandleader.

They’re not particular whether you’re playing a flat 5th or a ruptured 129th as long as they can dance.

This guitar is such a pal. It’s a psychiatrist. It’s a doggone bartender. It’s a housewife. This guy is everything. Whenever I find that I’ve got a problem, I’ll go pick my guitar up and play. It’s the greatest pal in the whole world.

Gratitude is when memory is stored in the heart and not in the mind.

Jazz is like wine. When it is new it’s only for the experts, but when it gets older everybody wants it.

Jazz is the sound of surprise.

Some players get very philosophical and cerebral about Jazz. You don’t need any prologues, you just play.

I love to hear the note sing.

Music used to be essential and meaningful, but now it’s disposable.

I compose my pieces with a formula that I created myself.

People don’t want to suffer. They want to sound good immediately and this is one of the biggest problems.

Mary Lou Williams used to tell me: If you’re not feeling right, play a minor tune and it falls into place.

If a guy is gonna to play good bop, he has to have a sort of a bop soul.