Artistic Synergy Quotes

To me, art begets art. Painting feeds the eye just as poetry feeds the ear, which is to say that both feed the soul.

When we write, we complement each other. We wrote six songs, Barry and I, while Robin was ill during the American tour, and they were terrible until Robin came back, and then everything worked out.

You can have a great script, or a great director and a bad script, and get a great movie. Nothing really guarantees anything.

But it's always really difficult to find someone that has the qualities to be a great accompanist.

Sometimes you make a connection with a writer or a piece of material, and there's not much to ask.

You can't do seven successful albums and just hate each other. Our yin and yang, and night and day, is what made us great when we went into the studio.

I've discovered just how symbiotic the relationship is between writers, directors and actors. They ask the same questions and strip down texts in exactly the same way.

I love working with people and having them bring something to the table that I couldn't. I think one of my favourite artists to work with has been Kucka. She's Australian, too, and it's great working with her because we kind of have a very similar take on music, and we like a lot of the same stuff. We're not super-precious about ideas.

Music and visual performance have to influence each other. Designers and musicians have to be the nexus of all things pop culture, so I think about designers when I'm making music.

We've known Cyndi Lauper since she was in 'Blue Angel'; we did a TV show with her back in '79 or '80. We don't have any competition; we're complementary.

In music, as you develop a theme or musical idea, there are many points at which directions must be decided, and at any time I was in the throes of debate with myself, harmonically or melodically, I would turn to Billy Strayhorn. We would talk, and then the whole world would come into focus. The steady hand of his good judgment pointed to the clear way that was fitting for us. He was not, as he was often referred to by many, my alter ego. Billy Strayhorn was my right arm, my left arm, all the eyes in the back of my head, my brainwaves in his head, and his in mine.

We certainly have a lot of ideas, and we both love what Tony [Fucile] did with the book [Bink & Gollie]. If we could all pull it off, I think all three of us would like to do another.

I think there are some things I am unable to fully express with my visual work, and the music is what fills that void. At the same time, I don't think you can fully appreciate the music without the anchor of the visual work.

There's no relationship that I find that's closer than a creative relationship.

I saw it as a challenge to play with Pat and we put hours and hours into it, usually on the bus. The trick was to find something that we both wanted to play within our different styles which would add up to being greater than the sum of its parts.

I find myself, the more I grow up the more I hang around creatives, musicians. I find them more inspiring to be around. I'd probably say that. The more creative you are - I get along with them better. There is more of an understanding.

One of the greatest experiences I ever had was listening to a conversation with Joni Mitchell and Wayne Shorter. Just to hear them talking, my mouth was open. They understand each other perfectly, and they make these leaps and jumps because they don't have to explain anything.

Collaborating with other artists is an emotional thing. Obviously, you don't do it unless this person inspires you.

Art, like sex, cannot be carried on indefinitely solo; after all, they have the same enemy, sterility.

Personal chemistry forges the way for musical chemistry.

Music gives 'wings' to words.

I instinctively felt Pancham and Gulzarbhai were meant to make music together.

It's important that the director and actor have good chemistry, and not just the actors.

When you get to work with a good director, an actor's job gets reduced to half.

The visuals are equally as important as the music. It's all a complete experience.