Rhythms Quotes

"I did this Archaos circus thing, which was a show called `Metal Clown.` They`re a French circus troupe, no animals, very over-the-top, and they do lots of stunts like juggling chain saws, all kinds of fire, it`s like a freak show, you know, but blown up, enlarged. Basically they had a troupe of 80 Brazilian artists with drums, the whole troupe. I left school at 16 and went to do that, my sister as well. I learned a lot off them, their rhythms, the way they were throwing them out. I`d always be playing during spare time with one of the guys, and he`d say, `It`s wrong` about the rhythms, but I learned later on it`s just `slop`; not even slop, it doesn`t have to be on, if you know what I mean. Not on all the time, just a natural rhythm. I certainly used that idea in Jamiroquai`s music."

(My characters) all start with rhythms and sounds. Once I hear the voice and get into the rhythm, the attitude and the physicality just come out on their own. Ching Change, the Church Lady and Hans have a meter and pitch that are distinctly their own.

"First of all, the music that people call Latin or Hispanic is really African. So Black people need to get the credit for that. Number two, Latin people are very passionate, and the music that we love is definitely Afro-rooted -- whether it`s Bob Marley or Afro-Cuban -- because it deals with rhythms." (quoted in response to the use of the term "Latin Explosion" in TV Guide, 19-25 February 2000 issue, Vol. 48, No. 8, 40-42.)

"I never considered myself part of rock `n` roll. My stuff was more adult. It was more difficult for teenagers to relate to; my stuff was filled with more despair than anything you`d associate with rock `n` roll. Since I couldn`t see people dancing, I didn`t write jitterbugs or twists. I wrote rhythms that moved me. My style required pure heart singing."

What I do has a lot to do with the words. My favorite thing is to have two scripts at the same time, and study them simultaneously in the kitchen. Go over the words, over and over, do them different ways, different inflections and rhythms. For me, rhythm is very important. I think we express ourselves as much with rhythm as with the words. It`s not what you say, it`s how you say it. I think it`s very true. If you start to say your lines and it sounds right, usually I stick with that. If it sounds right, it probably is right. It`s curious, how you`re not collaborating with anyone at that point, and by the time you get there with other actors on the set, usually what you`ve done at home makes sense, and it`s acceptable to everybody. The thing I have trouble with, because I`m so dependent on knowing my lines, is that if suddenly somebody says, Here`s a big speech. You`re going to do that instead," I get lost. At that point, I understand why Marlon Brando loves cue cards." - On how he memorizes his lines and mentally prepares himself for each role.

Because I don`t play guitar any more, African harmonies and rhythms have been an inspiration to me. I love the raw origin of the sound. It complements my voice and words naturally.

I`m just a storyteller, and the cinema happens to be my medium. I like it because it recreates life in movement, enlarges it, enhances it, distills it. For me, it`s far closer to the miraculous creation of life than, say, a painting or music or even literature. It`s not just an art form; it`s actually a new form of life, with its own rhythms, cadences, perspectives and transparencies. It`s my way of telling a story.

If there was no black man there would be no Rock`n`Roll. The beat, the rhythms of Africa are what created Rock`n`Roll and Jazz.

I spent my last year of high school in Latin America, and there`s a edge of salsa under all of my rhythms.

Composers in the old days used to keep strictly to the base of the theme, as their real subject. Beethoven varies the melody, harmony and rhythms so beautifully.

Gospel music rhythms are not African in origin, although I know that`s what the jazz experts say.

(Though Wilson was the most notable playwright of his generation, he doesn`t seem to have influenced younger writers. He doesn`t have obvious imitators.) It would almost amount to arrogance to try to imitate him, ... His writing is so personal, with its musical rhythms.

The tunes, rhythms, and messages are drawn mainly from secular culture.

On the mountains mistakes are fatal. In politics, mistakes are wounding emotionally, but you recover. Personally, wilderness helps me get back in touch with natural rhythms, helps me reflect and, in the process, restore my creativity.