James Newton Howard Quotes

My education as a film composer, you can't not - if you like the orchestra like I do, if you are a symphonist like I am - you can't not listen to John Williams' work.

I play piano and trumpet. I studied classical guitar.

I became a professional musician and played all kinds of music. I played bluegrass, I played classical music, and for many years, I played jazz.

Pop songs are not as graceful as they used to be. Performers today haven't gone through the regimen of learning how to write. And of course, everyone wants to own copyrights.

I don't know the names of any pop musicians. Pop music is standardised; it's made to please the largest audience possible. I also compose to please a large audience, but when you listen to my music, you understand that I have studied and applied the whole history of composition.

I feel like I'm an okay piano player. To the music world, to people that's in the hip-hop culture, they probably look at me like, 'Zaytoven the greatest piano player in the world.' I'm okay.

I was actually going to go to a conservatory after I graduated college, now I'm thankful that Pentatonix happened because I'm working with singers in this realm of mainstream music, and to learn about how all that comes together has really helped my cello playing.

I like a composer called Henry Purcell, and I love to listen to Neil Young.

I do have musical background; I sing.

I have been doing music all my life so everyday when I get up I expect music will be part of it.

I listen to Prince on my iPad. And I use a Chords & Scales app to warm up before performing.

If I couldn't act, I'd really love to try music.

I play, like, 12 instruments. Guitar, piano, harmonica, African drums... I'm working on mastering the accordion.

Well, I actually first got into music as a small child, and as I became a teen, I sought out making money from music, weather that was singing lounge gigs, backup in studios, or weddings.

I've been around two years shy of 50 years doing what I do. I am a musician.

I'm not that musical. I don't really know how a record is produced, and, funnily enough, I don't want to.

I needed to really pursue music and learn what I needed to learn on my own by getting in and doing it, not by reading a book about it.

I wrote music as soon as I knew notation.

When I really started liking music was when I could play some of it myself, and after a couple of years of playing folk music, I kinda rediscovered those hits that were on the radio all the time when I was a kid.

I get to focus on being a musician sometimes, and I get to focus on being a vocalist sometimes.

Young singers are much better educated musically, much better informed, through discs and videos, than I was.

I'm not a singer. I'm a musician, which is different.

I knew when I went to a very hippie high school that focused on music that I wanted to do something in the industry.

As a teenager I had friends who had little music studios in their bedrooms and garages. I'd go and play around; very soon, my hobby became a passion.

Heck, I'm no Henry Mancini or Michel Legrand. I just play the guitar and write songs.