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Ornette Coleman Biography

Ornette Coleman

Randolph Denard Ornette Coleman (March 9, 1930[dubious – discuss] – June 11, 2015) was an American jazz saxophonist, violinist, trumpeter, and composer. He was one of the major innovators of the free jazz movement of the 1960s, a term he invented with the name of his 1961 album. His "Broadway Blues" has become a standard and has been cited as a key work in the free jazz movement. He was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 1994. His album Sound Grammar received the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for music.

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Ornette Coleman Quotes

Jazz is the only music in which the same note can be played night after night but differently each time.

Jazz, Memorable, Music, Night, Time

When I have them working together, it's like a beautiful kaleidoscope.

Beautiful, Together, Working, Working Together

We in the Western world suffer from too many categories and classes; we've forgotten that we all still have diapers on. We've separated music from life.

Categories, Class, Forgotten, Music, Suffering

I think that those elements - light and sound - are beyond democratic. They're into the creative part of life.

Creative, Elements, Life, Light, Thinking

Whatever you do, it's over when you do it - but first you have to do it.

Firsts

After I found out that I was playing music and that I'd have to learn how to read and write music, I started doing that about two years later. Finally, I said, "Oh, that means what I really want to do is to be a composer. " But when I was coming up in Texas, there was segregation. There was no schools to go to. I taught myself how to read and how to start writing.

Composer, Mean, Playing, Read, School, Writing

I decided, if I'm going to be poor and black and all, the least thing I'm going to do is to try and find out who I am. I created everything about me.

Created, Decided, Discovery, Everything, Music, Who I Am

I don't really live like a musician myself. I think music is just something that I do, but I'd like to be doing lots of other things. I like to cure all kinds of illness.

Cure, Kind, Kinds, Music, Musician, Thinking

I had a really good time in New Orleans, although I had some very tragic times in Baton Rouge. Some guys beat me up and threw my horn away. 'Cause I had a beard, then, and long hair like the Beatles.

New Orleans, Hair, Long, Orleans, Tragic, Horn

I mean, if you decided to go out today and get you an instrument and do whatever it is that you do, no one can tell you how you're going to do it but when you do it.

Instrument, Instruments, Mean, Today

Originally, I wanted to be a composer. I always tell people, 'I think of myself as a composer.

Composer, Originally, People, Think, Thinking

I wasn't so interested in being paid. I wanted to be heard. That's why I'm broke.

Broke, Heard, Interested, Jazz

It's just someone has labelled us as having a different label to do what you do. I find that labels are the worst thing in the world for artistic expression.

Different, Expression, Having, Label, Labels, World

It seems the activity of expressing sound to do with music has just started blooming - and because of that, the beginners feel like they're professionals, and the professionals feel like they are beginners, which is very healthy.

Beginners, Expressing, Healthy, Sound

Sound has no parents.

Parent, Parents, Sound

Most of my relationships have been like that - with record companies. I've never had a legitimate business relationship with a company. I've always had a personal relationship with someone in the company.

Business Relationship, Company, Like, Records, Relationship, Relationships

I don't know what they're thinking about. Just because someone says, 'I like what you do' or something: They might like it today and tomorrow they might not. I've had that experience with record companies.

Thinking, Records, Might, Record, Today

I've never had a relationship with a record executive. I always went to the record company by someone that liked my playing. Then they would get fired, and I'd be left with the record company. And then - because they got fired - the record company wouldn't do anything for me.

Records, Company, Executives, Left, Record, Fired

The human being receives the pleasure from music, not from the argument over what it is.

Music, Jazz, Argument, Pleasure, Human

Musicians tell me, if what I'm doing is right, they should never have gone to school.

Gone, Musician, Right, School

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