--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I can't read music. Instead, I'd do stuff…" description: "\"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 conte..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/138/eddie-van-halen-6965_annual_i-can-t-read-music-instead-i-d-do-stuff_2169802.jpg" --- # I can't read music. Instead, I'd do stuff inside the… ![“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…” quote by Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/138/eddie-van-halen-6965_annual_i-can-t-read-music-instead-i-d-do-stuff_2169802.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/138/eddie-van-halen-6965_annual_i-can-t-read-music-instead-i-d-do-stuff_2169802.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/138/eddie-van-halen-6965_annual_i-can-t-read-music-instead-i-d-do-stuff_2169802.jpg) > “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.” [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He emphasizes creativity over formal music reading, showing skill can emerge from intuition and experimentation. **In simple terms:** Creativity beats formal training. Key Takeaway Trust your intuition. Themes creativity music improvisation Mood inspired confident Type musical personal When to use this quote - performance - competitions - personal expression Key Concepts musical intuition non‑traditional technique Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance intuition with technical study? - What unconventional methods have you tried? A Different Perspective Formal training can provide technical depth that intuition alone may lack. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Annual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/annual/) [Beach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beach/) [City](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/city/) [College](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/college/) [Contests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contests/) [Crazy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crazy/) [Crazy things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crazy-things/) [Down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/down/) [First](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first/) [Inside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inside/) [Inside Piano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inside-piano-2014129/) [Instead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instead/) [Interesting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interesting/) [Interpretation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interpretation/) [Judges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judges/) [Kids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kids/) [Kinds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kinds/) [Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Long beach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-beach/) [Me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/me/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/out/) [Piano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/piano/) [Piano Contests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/piano-contests-2666123/) [Piano Harmonics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/piano-harmonics-2666124/) [Playing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/playing/) [Prize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prize/) [Put](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/put/) [Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/read/) [Read Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/read-music-404341/) [Right](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right/) [Row](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/row/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [Stuff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stuff/) [Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things/) [Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought/) [Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two/) [Two years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two-years/) [Used](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/used/) [Very](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/very/) [Were](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/were/) [Won](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/won/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [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…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/i-can-t-read-music-instead-i-d-do-stuff-inside-the-piano-do-harmonics-2/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) > [With just one musician, you can really do an unlimited number of things on the inside of the piano, if you have at your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cage/with-just-one-musician-you-can-really-do-an-unlimited-number-of/) [John Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cage/) > [I was bookish and awkward and wanted a means of expressing the millions of emotions flying around inside me. The piano seemed as good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-perkins/i-was-bookish-and-awkward-and-wanted-a-means-of-expressing-the/) [Sue Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-perkins/) > [My interest in Women in Film came from attending the Crystal Awards in 1998 where Meryl Streep and producers Gale Anne Hurd and Lucy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-lawrence/my-interest-in-women-in-film-came-from-attending-the-crystal-awards/) [Sharon Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-lawrence/) > [Lawmakers have good reason to want a healthy broadcast industry. Broadcast TV stations provide more than 186,000 jobs on an annual basis, which directly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-smith/lawmakers-have-good-reason-to-want-a-healthy-broadcast-industry/) [Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-smith/) > [The West begins where the average annual rainfall drops below twenty inches. 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Anthony Lukas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-anthony-lukas/) > [Cape Cod baseball dates back to the time of the Civil War. A poster at the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown touts a round-trip…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-leavy/cape-cod-baseball-dates-back-to-the-time-of-the-civil-war-a-poster-at/) [Jane Leavy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-leavy/) > [We've been paying for 100 percent of preventive care. But if you're not getting annual physicals, then you're not going to gain a financial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-burd/we-ve-been-paying-for-100-percent-of-preventive-care-but-if-you-re/) [Steven Burd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-burd/) > [The whole purpose of annual reviews is to keep you abreast of whether or not you are fulfilling the requirements of tenure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-finkelstein/the-whole-purpose-of-annual-reviews-is-to-keep-you-abreast-of-whether/) [Norman Finkelstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-finkelstein/) ## More by Eddie Van Halen > [Everything comes to me while I'm sitting on the pot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/everything-comes-to-me-while-i-m-sitting-on-the-pot/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) > [If you have a great-sounding guitar that's a quality instrument and a good amp, and you know how to make the guitar talk, that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/if-you-have-a-great-sounding-guitar-that-s-a-quality-instrument-and-a/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) > [I don't really know what inspires me to write the music I do, but usually, the music will set the tone for the lyrics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/i-don-t-really-know-what-inspires-me-to-write-the-music-i-do-but/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) > [We're musicians. We make music for a living. It's that simple. Nothing else matters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/we-re-musicians-we-make-music-for-a-living-it-s-that-simple-nothing/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) > [I never dreamt of being a musician for my livelihood. I certainly never would have wanted to be in the business that I'm in,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/i-never-dreamt-of-being-a-musician-for-my-livelihood-i-certainly/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) > [I applied to Uncyclopedia Bassists, and was accepted!!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/i-applied-to-uncyclopedia-bassists-and-was-accepted/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) > [I never took guitar lessons. I took classical piano lessons from the age of six when we lived in Holland.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/i-never-took-guitar-lessons-i-took-classical-piano-lessons-from-the/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) > [It's all about sound. It's that simple. Wireless is wireless, and it's digital. Hopefully somewhere along the line somebody will add more ones to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/it-s-all-about-sound-it-s-that-simple-wireless-is-wireless-and-it-s/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) > [I took classical piano lessons from the age of five.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/i-took-classical-piano-lessons-from-the-age-of-five/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) > [Actually, if I could deliberately sit down and write a pop hit, all my songs would be pop hits! 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I'm just a normal jerk who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/music-is-for-people-the-word-pop-is-simply-short-for-popular-it-means/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) > [And if I would have taken lessons I probably wouldn't have done it, and what forced me to do all this weird stuff on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/and-if-i-would-have-taken-lessons-i-probably-wouldn-t-have-done-it/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) > [I boil the strings so they stretch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-van-halen/i-boil-the-strings-so-they-stretch/) [Eddie Van Halen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) [Explore all 96 Eddie Van Halen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-van-halen/) ## More Annual quotes > [The whole purpose of annual reviews is to keep you abreast of whether or not you are fulfilling the requirements of tenure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-finkelstein/the-whole-purpose-of-annual-reviews-is-to-keep-you-abreast-of-whether/) [Norman Finkelstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-finkelstein/) > [We've been paying for 100 percent of preventive care. But if you're not getting annual physicals, then you're not going to gain a financial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-burd/we-ve-been-paying-for-100-percent-of-preventive-care-but-if-you-re/) [Steven Burd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-burd/) > [Cape Cod baseball dates back to the time of the Civil War. A poster at the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown touts a round-trip…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-leavy/cape-cod-baseball-dates-back-to-the-time-of-the-civil-war-a-poster-at/) [Jane Leavy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-leavy/) > [Serious drama in a significant degree began at Harvard in the 1880s. In 1881, the Cercle Francais initiated the annual French play, and shortly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-lukas/serious-drama-in-a-significant-degree-began-at-harvard-in-the-1880s/) [J. Anthony Lukas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-anthony-lukas/) > [Even as global warming increases the frequency of El Nino and the Atlantic event, their effects are being amplified by the annual loss of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-shoumatoff/even-as-global-warming-increases-the-frequency-of-el-nino-and-the/) [Alex Shoumatoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-shoumatoff/) > [All cultures are different. Some commit genocide. Some are uniquely peaceful. Some frequent bathhouses in groups. Some don't show each other the soles of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/casey-affleck/all-cultures-are-different-some-commit-genocide-some-are-uniquely/) [Casey Affleck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/casey-affleck/) > [I am for making of terms annual, and for sending an entire new set every year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/i-am-for-making-of-terms-annual-and-for-sending-an-entire-new-set/) [John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/) > [I am extremely devoted to Amazon Prime - which offers speedier free deliveries, free movie streaming and other benefits for an annual fee -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-oster/i-am-extremely-devoted-to-amazon-prime-which-offers-speedier-free/) [Emily Oster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-oster/) > [Many people think that buying a fake product is harmless, but counterfeiting is estimated to result in annual losses of over $20 billion dollars…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tory-burch/many-people-think-that-buying-a-fake-product-is-harmless-but/) [Tory Burch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tory-burch/) > [The West begins where the average annual rainfall drops below twenty inches. Water is important to people who do not have it, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/the-west-begins-where-the-average-annual-rainfall-drops-below-twenty/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [Lawmakers have good reason to want a healthy broadcast industry. Broadcast TV stations provide more than 186,000 jobs on an annual basis, which directly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-smith/lawmakers-have-good-reason-to-want-a-healthy-broadcast-industry/) [Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-smith/) > [My interest in Women in Film came from attending the Crystal Awards in 1998 where Meryl Streep and producers Gale Anne Hurd and Lucy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-lawrence/my-interest-in-women-in-film-came-from-attending-the-crystal-awards/) [Sharon Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-lawrence/) > [The nation did not begin to realize the extraordinary possibilities of the vast Western territory until its attention was thus suddenly and definitely concentrated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-moody/the-nation-did-not-begin-to-realize-the-extraordinary-possibilities/) [John Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-moody/) > [You do something annual every year, don't you?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-noory/you-do-something-annual-every-year-don-t-you/) [George Noory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-noory/) > [I saw my potential as artistic director, which is very different from designer. Fashion companies might have $200 million to $300 million in annual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-wu/i-saw-my-potential-as-artistic-director-which-is-very-different-from/) [Jason Wu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-wu/) [Browse all 45 Annual quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/annual/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "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!' 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