Aphex Twin Quotes

I'm an untrained musician. Untrained musicians don't really have any music theory, they don't have a lot of rules. We break the rules, but it's mostly because we don't know what the rules are. It's easy for us to go to certain places, so I'm not surprised that a lot of people were amused by my songwriting style.

In other words, musicians know that going back to the Spoonful, what we were doing was not copying.

I didn't follow the standard rules of bass playing, and many musicians on many different instruments who became noteworthy for their unique or particular style did a very similar thing.

Since my father is a musician as well, he taught me growing up that if you can play jazz, you can learn all instruments and write on them. He wanted me to be a songwriter that can do anything in any genre. I'm all about doing every genre.

The first time I learned how to play, my guitar was out of tune. I didn't know it; I just started writing songs.

I think that what I'm interested with is the creative side of music-making, rather than all the travelling.

A friend of mine once told me that I can't screw up when I play my own music. I also take voice lessons, play other peoples' songs out of music books, and occasionally figure out how to play other people's music from records. This keeps my ears, fingers, and mind working.

I've always been a fan of just writing songs and making music.

I haven't written enough songs to be able to say that I have a system. I've only written a handful.

I am so happy that I didn't go to school and I didn't have anyone to tell me how to position my fingers on the piano correctly.

I can't read music. Instead, I'd do stuff inside the piano, do harmonics and all kinds of crazy things. They used to put me in these annual piano contests down at Long Beach City College, and two years in a row, I won first prize - out of like 5,000 kids! The judges were like, 'Very interesting interpretation!' I thought I was playing it right.

The thing I try to do the most is to play in terms of the song and play in terms of what I'm hearing.

I am not musically educated yet. I don't read - I make my own language that works for myself. But I play by ear.

They tried to get me to use a pick when I first joined the band. They had certain things they thought were appropriate. I tried to adapt as much as I could.

There's a basic rule which runs through all kinds of music, kind of an unwritten rule. I don't know what it is. But I've got it.

Every note is a lifetime for itself.

When I was a student, if you accidentally wrote a triad in a piece of yours, it was just sort of like you were breaking the law! You just couldn't do it. And that just meant you were a bad composer.

I'm usually just writing lyrics alone in my room, but I'm happy to be producing and writing chords anywhere.

I was put through piano lessons when I was a kid. I say 'put through' because it was fun and I loved it, and it's been beneficial now, but it was difficult because, although I can read music, I much prefer just playing and improvising and at least finding my own way to play an instrument.

I don't really play a lot of slide in general, but it was fun getting into that style and exploring it.

I just kind of go with what I am feeling and don't think I have any kind of recipe for it... I mean, that's what drew me into writing. It's fun, and sometimes you don't get a great song. Sometimes you do.

I'm all about inspiring young musicians to get out there and express themselves through music.

Music has a lot in com­mon with math­e­mat­ics. But in music, two and two need not make four: they add up to what­ever you wish.

I was fortunate enough to work at the peak of the great golden age of musicals. And then for awhile, I think they were being advanced in different ways. Andrew Lloyd-Webber brought the rock beat to musicals; people tried different things. The joy of musicals is that there is no perfect recipe; it is what you throw into it.

Young people don't always do what they're told, but if they can pull it off and do something wonderful, sometimes they escape punishment.