Herbie Hancock
Herbie Hancock
Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancockis an American pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, composer and actor. Starting his career with Donald Byrd, he shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet where Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the post-bop sound. He was one of the first jazz musicians to embrace synthesizers and funk music. Hancock's music is often melodic and accessible; he has had many songs "cross over" and achieved success...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionPianist
Date of Birth12 April 1940
CityChicago, IL
CountryUnited States of America
I started playing piano when I was 7. And I started with classical lessons. Then I really got exposed to jazz.
Sometimes you can practice something but what you wind up playing when you're out doing a gig is not what you practiced. What you learn is not necessarily what you practice.
It's very different from classical music. In classical music, you are playing something that is written by someone else.
It's not easy to play in a framework that requires simplicity and to tastefully find ways to interject the kind of freedom that we have in playing jazz.
Although my parents were playing jazz for me when I was a kid, I didn't pay much attention until I saw someone my age improvising, playing jazz..
A lot of the people that are making the music didn't have the kind of experiences I've had, playing with some of the great masters of jazz.
It hit me like a ton of bricks, and I had to almost hide my face, because tears were welling up in my eyes. Just the thought of playing with Bird, wow!
I started off with classical music, and I got into jazz when I was about 14 years old. And I've been playing jazz ever since.
We were listening to a lot of different people, but we were listening to a lot of real innovators, and we were full of ideas.
I've started something called the Rhythm of Life Foundation to encourage the technological community to develop ideas and software that directly effect the advancement of humanity.
Things that happen to you are events. It's what you do with them that determine whether they're going to be problems or solutions.
Things like creating in the moment, being in the moment, trusting your instincts, not being afraid to go outside the comfort zone.
And you allow yourself to play off that plane. You're in this dark room of unknowns, you allow yourself to go there.
Another convention is that the drummer and bass player are timekeepers, but there's no reason they have to be bound to that.