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Wynton Marsalis

Wynton Marsalis Quotes

Trumpeter

Wynton Marsalis is an American trumpeter, composer, and bandleader. Born on October 18, 1961, he has made significant contributions to the field of jazz music. Marsalis has won numerous awards, including nine Grammy Awards, and has been a leading figure in the jazz community.

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All Jazz People Musician Art Ifs Play Jazz Music Way Mean Teach

Famous Wynton Marsalis Quotes

“My schedule is always tight. But I like to have the pressure of having to finish doing something; it gives me an added edge.”

Giving Give Me Pressure Edges Schedules

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“The first time I ever played the trumpet in public, I played the Marine Hymn. I sounded terrible.”

Firsts Terrible First Time Marine Trumpets Hymns Marine Life

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“The heart of a music is its rhythm. The heart of rhythm section music is the rhythm.”

Heart Music Is Rhythm Sections Rhythm Section

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“The musicians I respected were much older than me. I expected them to cut my head, and they did.”

Cutting Musician Expected

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“The rebuilding of New Orleans is an important point in the history of the United States.”

Important States United United States New Orleans Rebuilding

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“There was one thing Beethoven didn't do. When one of his string quartets was played, you can believe the second violin wasn't improvising.”

Believe One Thing Strings Second Chance Violin Improvising Quartets String Quartets

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“There's so much spirit of integration and democracy in jazz.”

Spirit Democracy Jazz Integration

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“This rebuilding of New Orleans gives us the perfect opportunity to see if we're ready to extend the legacy of Dr. King.”

Ifs Giving Opportunity Perfect Ready Kings Legacy Drs New Orleans Rebuilding

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“We looked up to our father. He still is much greater than us.”

Stills Father Greater Our Father

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“When did we begin to lose faith in our ability to effect change?”

Loses Ability Effects

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“My daddy expected that my brothers and I and our generation would make the world a better place. He had lived in an America of continual social progress.”

World America Social Progress Generations Brother Expected My Brother Better Place Daddy Our Generation Social Progress

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“Don't worry about what others say about your music. Pursue whatever you are hearing... but if everybody really hates your music maybe you could try some different approaches.”

Ifs Trying Different Hate Worry Approach Hearing Pursue Different Approach

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“Everything comes out in blues music: joy, pain, struggle. Blues is affirmation with absolute elegance. It's about a man and a woman. So the pain and the struggle in the blues is that universal pain that comes from having your heart broken. Most blues songs are not about social statements.”

Men Heart Pain Joy Song Social Struggle Broken Universal Absolutes Statements Affirmation Elegance Blues Music

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“I didn't have a philosophical understanding of music until I came to New York. I didn't understand how it applied to my kind and my generation. I thought it was just old people talking.”

People Kind Understanding Talking Generations New York Philosophical Old People My Generation People Talking

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“I feel like a lot of the fundamental material, I've assimilated. So now the question is: Am I going to really get into my spiritual inheritance of music and really develop my abilities?”

Feels Spiritual Ability Materials Fundamentals Inheritance

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“I feel that for years of teaching in the country and reading criticism in books, I feel like the things most needed in our culture are the understanding of the meanings of our music. We haven't done that good of job teaching our kids what our music means or how we developed our taste in music that reminds us and teaches us who we are.”

Feels Years Mean Book Country Done Kids Jobs Culture Reading Understanding Teach Teaching Havens Needed Taste Criticism Who We Are Taste In Music

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“I grew up in the South, in New Orleans, where guys torture you all the time. So I didn't really grow up on the self-esteem campaign. When you were lousy at something, they told you you were lousy, and they told you how to fix it.”

Self Guy Grows Growing Up Self Esteem Grew Grew Up South Campaigns Esteem Torture New Orleans

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“I had to figure out how to survive in New York, and most of my time was occupied in getting an apartment and getting money. A lot of older jazz guys looked out for me and found me gigs and places to stay.”

Guy Found Figures New York Jazz My Time Apartment Gigs Get Money

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“I never minded giving my opinions. They are just opinions, and I had studied music and I had strong feelings. I was happy for my opinions to join all the other opinions. But you have to be prepared for what comes back, especially if you don't agree with the dominant mythology.”

Ifs Giving Feelings Strong Opinion Agree Prepared Mythology Dominant Be Prepared Strong Feeling Others Opinions

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“I think that the blues is in everything, so it's not possible to neglect it. You hear somebody go 'Ooh ooh oooh,' and that's the blues. You hear a rock n' roll song. That's the blues. Somebody playing a guitar solo? They're playing the blues.”

Thinking Song Rocks Guitar Neglect Rock N Roll Solo Guitar Solos

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“I try to find the core values that are so fundamental that they transcend ethnic identity. That doesn't mean I run from it. I embrace African-American culture and I love it and embrace it, but it is a part of a human identity. So I'm always trying to make a larger human statement.”

Trying Humans Mean Running Values Culture Identity Fundamentals Embrace Core Statements African American American Culture Always Trying Core Values Ethnic Identity African American Culture

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“I'm not a person who writes really abstract things with oblique references. I look at abstraction like I look at condiments. Give me some Tabasco sauce, some ketchup, some mayonnaise. I love all of that. Put it on a trumpet. I've just got to have the ketchup and Tabasco sauce. That's my attitude about musical philosophy.”

Giving Writing Looks Persons Philosophy Attitude Give Me Musical Abstract Abstraction Sauce Trumpets My Attitude Ketchup Condiments Mayonnaise Tabasco

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“If you are serious about American culture and you are serious about Afro-American culture, you are in a lot of pain. You are not - you are not smiling about it.”

Ifs Pain Culture Serious American Culture Afros

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“In the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra we play such a diversity of music, with 10 arrangers in the band, we don't really worry about whether it's contemporary or not.”

Play Worry Band Diversity Jazz Contemporary Orchestra Lincoln Center

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“It's important to address young people in the reopening of New Orleans. In rebuilding, let's revisit the potential of American democracy and American glory.”

People Important Young Democracy Glory Addresses New Orleans Rebuilding American Democracy

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“Jazz music is America's past and its potential, summed up and sanctified and accessible to anybody who learns to listen to, feel, and understand it. The music can connect us to our earlier selves and to our better selves-to-come. It can remind us of where we fit on the time line of human achievement, an ultimate value of art.”

Feels Humans Art Self America Past Values Lines Fit Achievement Music Is Ultimate Jazz Jazz Music Playing Jazz

Book:Moving to Higher Ground: How Jazz Can Change Your Life

Source: Moving to Higher Ground: How Jazz Can Change Your Life

“Many of our greatest musicians abandoned all of their aesthetic objectives to try to become pertinent. And, at the end of the day, they never became pop stars. I counter stated that very strongly, and I continue to do that.”

Trying Ends Stars Musician Pops Objectives The End Of The Day Abandoned Aesthetic Pop Stars Pertinent And At The End Of The Day Greatest Musician

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“My mother always took my brothers and me to music lessons. There were six children. Our parents attended our concerts and encouraged us to study and enjoy many different types of music.”

Children Different Mother Parent Enjoy Study Brother Type Lessons Six My Brother Concerts Different Types Of Music Music Lessons

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“My thing is, once you start to put a backbeat on your music or something that has a machine in it, you have popularity, but you lose the flexibility. And you lose a richness.”

Loses Machines Popularity Flexibility Richness

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“Swing is extreme coordination. It's a maintaining balance, equilibrium. It's about executing very difficult rhythms with a panache and a feeling in the context of very strict time. So, everything about the swing is about some guideline and some grid and the elegant way that you negotiate your way through that grid.”

Way Feelings Difficult Balance Extremes Rhythm Swings Strict Elegant Maintaining Equilibrium Guidelines Grids Coordination Executing Panache

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“The blues. It runs through all American music. Somebody bending the note. The other is the two-beat groove. It's in New Orleans music, it's in jazz, it's in country music, it's in gospel.”

Two Country Running Beats Jazz Notes New Orleans Groove Bending American Music

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“The history of jazz lets us know that this period in our history is not the only period we've come through together. If we truly understood the history of our national arts, we'd know that we have mutual aspirations, a shared history, in good times and bad.”

Ifs Knows Art Together Periods Understood Jazz Aspiration Good Times Mutual

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“The main three components are the blues, improvisation - which is some kind of element that people are trying to make it up - and swing, which means even though they're making up music, they're trying to make it up together. It feels great, like you're having a great conversation with somebody.”

People Feels Trying Kind Mean Together Three Like You Conversation Elements Swings Components Improvisation Making Up

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“The majority of the high schools and the public schools in N.Y.C. don't even have band programs. Hip-hop in a lot of ways is an outgrowth of a lack of instruments and a desire to play music, so we can't really fault the kids for that.”

Way Play Kids School Desire Band High School Program Instruments Majority Faults Hip Hop Hips Hops Public School

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“There's always the cliche of the choir shouting and clapping. OK, you have to do that, but there's also introspective parts, parts where you just follow someone that's preaching. There's lots of different emotions and moods that a service requires.”

Different Emotion Mood Preaching Cliche Shouting Introspective Choir Clapping Different Emotions

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“Through improvisation, jazz teaches you about yourself. And through swing, it teaches you that other people are individuals too. It teaches you how to coordinate with them.”

People Individual Teach Jazz About Yourself Swings Improvisation Coordinates Jazz Improvisation

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“When me and my brother would go to see our daddy playing, there'd be 30 people in the audience. I was only 14 or 15, but I realised something was wrong.”

People Audience Brother My Brother Daddy Realised

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“It's harder to build than destroy. To build is to engage and change. In jazz, we call progressing harmonies changes. Changes are like obstacles on a speed course. They demand your attention and require you to be present. They are coming...they are here..... and then they are gone. It's how life comes. Each moment is a procession from the future into the past and the sweet spot is always the present. Live in that sweet spot. Be present.”

Moments Past Courses Attention Gone Progress Sweet Demand Harder Harmony Jazz Obstacles Speed Spots Graduation Procession

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“Because the blues is the basis of most American music in the 20th century. It's a 12-bar form that's played by jazz, bluegrass and country musicians. It has a rhythmic vocabulary that's been used by rock n' roll. It's related to spirituals, and even the American fiddle tradition.”

Country Form Used Inspiring Rocks Century Musician Tradition Bases Jazz Bars Related Rock N Roll 20th Century Vocabulary Fiddle American Music Bluegrass

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“Jazz music is the power of now. There is no script. It's conversation. The emotion is given to you by musicians as they make split-second decisions to fulfill what they feel the moment requires.”

Feels Moments Given Decision Emotion Music Conversation Musician Music Is Jazz Musical Scripts Splits Jazz Music Power Of Now

Book:Moving to Higher Ground: How Jazz Can Change Your Life

Source: Moving to Higher Ground: How Jazz Can Change Your Life

“How great musicians demonstrate a mutual respect and trust on the bandstand can alter your outlook on the world and enrich every aspect of your life, understanding what it means to be a global citizen in the most modern sense.”

World Mean Understanding Music Modern Citizens Musician Aspect Jazz Musical Mutual Outlook Great Music Global Citizen Mutual Respect Great Musician Trust And Respect

Book:Moving to Higher Ground: How Jazz Can Change Your Life

Source: Moving to Higher Ground: How Jazz Can Change Your Life

“We're blues people. And blues never lets tragedy have the last word.”

People Lasts Music Tragedy Last Words

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“Jazz music is the power of now.”

Music Music Is Jazz Jazz Music Power Of Now Jazz Musician

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“A beat is a moment in the life a groove.”

Moments Music Beats Jazz Groove

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“Nothing else will ever capture the democratic process in sound as perfectly as Jazz.”

Process Sound Music Jazz Democratic Capture Jazz Music Democratic Process

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“In Jazz, improvisation isn't a matter of just making any ol' thing up. Jazz, like any language, has its own grammer and vocabulary. There's no right or wrong, just some choices that are better than others.”

Matter Choices Language Music Jazz Vocabulary Improvisation Jazz Improvisation

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“This music heals people because music is vibration, and the proper vibration heals.”

People Music Is Heal Carpe Diem Vibrations Carpe

Book:Jazz In The Bittersweet Blues Of Life

Source: Jazz In The Bittersweet Blues Of Life

“Love is the spiritual essence of what we do. Technique is the manifestation of the preparation and investment as a result of the love.”

Spiritual Passion Love Is Results Essence Investment Technique Preparation Manifestation

Book:To a Young Jazz Musician: Letters from the Road

Source: To a Young Jazz Musician: Letters from the Road

“And that's the soulful thing about playing: you offer something to somebody. You don't know if they'll like it, but you offer it.”

Ifs Knows Offers Jazz Soulful

Author:Wynton Marsalis

“Jazz is not just 'Well, man, this is what I feel like playing.' It's a very structured thing that comes down from a tradition and requires a lot of thought and study.”

Men Feels Wells Study Tradition Jazz

Author:Wynton Marsalis

About the Author

Born: October 18, 1961
Known for: Trumpeter
Quotes: 193

Related Topics

Jazz People Musician Art Ifs Play Jazz Music Way Mean Teach

Popular Topics

People Ifs Thinking Knows Men World Way Want Love Life Inspirational Needs Giving Feels Should Writing Trying Years Mind Firsts

Books & Sources

Moving to Higher Ground: How Jazz Can Change Your LifeRelated source material

Jazz In The Bittersweet Blues Of LifeRelated source material

To a Young Jazz Musician: Letters from the RoadRelated source material

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