Dizzy Gillespie
Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespiewas an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, and singer...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionComposer
Date of Birth21 October 1917
CityCheraw, SC
CountryUnited States of America
two firsts revelations
There have been two great revelations in my life: The first was bepop, the second was homeopathy.
bird world stealing
You can't steal a gift. Bird [Charlie Parker] gave the world his music, and if you can hear it you can have it.
play essence trying
I try to play the bare essence, to let everything be just what it's supposed to be.
past feet musician
As a musician you have to keep one foot back in the past and have one foot forward into the future.
music taken play
It's taken me all my life to learn what not to play.
music men serious
Men have died for this music. You can't get more serious than that.
writing thinking ideas
I think the idea is now for blacks to write about the history of our music. It's time for that, because whites have been doing it all the time. It's time for us to do it ourselves and tell it like it is.
music careers sound
I don't care much about music. What I like is sounds.
winning trying goes-on
Some days you get up and put the horn to your chops and it sounds pretty good and you win. Some days you try and nothing works and the horn wins. This goes on and on and then you die and the horn wins.
example force ideas process reasons teach
. . .I always try to teach by example and not force my ideas on a young musician. One of the reasons we're here is to be a part of this process of exchange.