51 Quotes by Lee Konitz

People look for a messiah all the time. And everybody is just busy doing their own thing, trying to learn how to play the music.

As soon as I play full bodied, I block out the rest of the sound. I'm just looking for the right note to fit the chords I'm hearing.

I stand back, sometimes, behind the rhythm section, so I don't physically look like the leader. I don't like that concept too much.

I've played with not such great players, and found that I was inspired to play very well. I welcome every one of those opportunities.

Each of these instruments has a voice, and if I hear a sound on an instrument that I don't like, I'm not interested usually in what he plays.

That's kind of my goal: to build a new row of meaningful tones.

You just keep playing. If someone special comes along and organizes it in a new way, then you'll have another approach and everybody will jump on it to try to learn.

Labels don’t mean anything to me. I’m trying to play as passionately as I’m able to. If they want to call that cool, that’s fine. Just spell the name right, is the formula.

You just keep playing. If someone special comes along and organizes it in a new way, then you’ll have another approach and everybody will jump on it to try to learn.