---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A lot of people ask me where music is…"
description: "\"A lot of people ask me where music is going today. I think it's going in short phrases. If you listen, anybody with an ear can hear that. Music is alwa..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/miles-davis-1842_accidents_a-lot-of-people-ask-me-where-music-is-go_2981873.jpg"
---

#  A lot of people ask me where music is going today. I think…

![“A lot of people ask me where music is going today. I think it's going in short phrases. If you listen, anybody with an ear can hear that. Music is always changing. It changes because of the times and the technology that's available, the material that things are made of, like plastic cars instead…” quote by Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/miles-davis-1842_accidents_a-lot-of-people-ask-me-where-music-is-go_2981873.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/miles-davis-1842_accidents_a-lot-of-people-ask-me-where-music-is-go_2981873.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/miles-davis-1842_accidents_a-lot-of-people-ask-me-where-music-is-go_2981873.jpg)

> “A lot of people ask me where music is going today. I think it's going in short phrases. If you listen, anybody with an ear can hear that. Music is always changing. It changes because of the times and the technology that's available, the material that things are made of, like plastic cars instead of steel. So when you hear an accident today it sounds different, not all the metal colliding like it was in the forties and fifties. Musicians pick up sounds and incorporate that into their playing, so the music that they make will be different.”

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Music evolves with cultural shifts, technology, and materials, leading to new sounds and forms.

**In simple terms:** Music changes with time and tools.

Key Takeaway

Embrace new tech to innovate music.

Themes

innovation culture technology sound

Mood

inquisitive forward‑looking

Type

analysis philosophy

When to use this quote

- music production
- instrument design
- education
- performance
- recording

Key Concepts

material culture aesthetic evolution

Questions to Reflect On

- How do new sounds reshape genre?
- What role does technology play in creativity?

A Different Perspective

Rapid change can alienate traditional audiences.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Accidents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accidents/) [Metals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metals/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Musician](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/musician/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Sound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sound/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/)

## Related quotes

> [A lot of the music that comes out today sounds like music that came out last week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/3-doors-down/a-lot-of-the-music-that-comes-out-today-sounds-like-music-that-came/)

[3 Doors Down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/3-doors-down/)

> [That's why so much of the music today sounds so much alike, because there's no in-between. So it's kind of nice to still turn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-vega/that-s-why-so-much-of-the-music-today-sounds-so-much-alike-because/)

[Alan Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-vega/)

> [The thing that is making jazz healthy today is that people are coming out of other backgrounds - from rock, folk, from ethnic music.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-taylor/the-thing-that-is-making-jazz-healthy-today-is-that-people-are-coming/)

Billy Taylor

> [The consumption of information, films, music has been changing in recent decades. It's hard to know what will become the film that can not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucrecia-martel/the-consumption-of-information-films-music-has-been-changing-in/)

[Lucrecia Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucrecia-martel/)

> [The belief in the '70s was that music was changing the world. I never believed that it had that great an effect. The effect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-newman/the-belief-in-the-70s-was-that-music-was-changing-the-world-i-never/)

[Randy Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-newman/)

> [Music is changing so quickly, and the landscape of the music industry itself is changing so quickly, that everything new, like Spotify, all feels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-swift/music-is-changing-so-quickly-and-the-landscape-of-the-music-industry/)

[Taylor Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-swift/)

> [“Be music always. Keep changing the keys, tones, pitch, and volume of each of the songs you create along your life's journey and play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/be-music-always-keep-changing-the-keys-tones-pitch-and-volume-of-each/)

[Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/)

> [Music is changing. I'm just doing what I'm doing, and hopefully in the next 20, 30 years, some kids can take what I'm doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trombone-shorty/music-is-changing-i-m-just-doing-what-i-m-doing-and-hopefully-in-the/)

[Trombone Shorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trombone-shorty/)

> [The conception of background music is changing. You use less and less of it these days.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satyajit-ray/the-conception-of-background-music-is-changing-you-use-less-and-less/)

[Satyajit Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satyajit-ray/)

> [Music is always changing and the changes are unpredictable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-sheehan/music-is-always-changing-and-the-changes-are-unpredictable/)

[Billy Sheehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-sheehan/)

> [There are people who will always want the genre, whatever it is, to stay traditional, to stay what it was like when you were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-rhett/there-are-people-who-will-always-want-the-genre-whatever-it-is-to/)

[Thomas Rhett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-rhett/)

> [Country music is always changing but the Opry is always there to serve as a lighthouse for what country music really is. The past,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dierks-bentley/country-music-is-always-changing-but-the-opry-is-always-there-to/)

[Dierks Bentley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dierks-bentley/)

> [Often by the time writers and producers try to get a new hit song, the industry has already moved on. Whatever you're creating might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/poo-bear/often-by-the-time-writers-and-producers-try-to-get-a-new-hit-song-the/)

[Poo Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/poo-bear/)

> [The business of making music is changing so radically because of the Internet. It's become a lot more democratic in one respect, but in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rzeznik/the-business-of-making-music-is-changing-so-radically-because-of-the/)

[John Rzeznik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rzeznik/)

> [It was a great time to be making music because everything else was changing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-waller/it-was-a-great-time-to-be-making-music-because-everything-else-was/)

Gordon Waller

## More by Miles Davis

> [I usually write from the rhythm section...If a drummer got a funky beat on some things - like a half-shuffle or a shuffle or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/i-usually-write-from-the-rhythm-section-if-a-drummer-got-a-funky-beat/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [Look, man, all I am is a trumpet player.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/look-man-all-i-am-is-a-trumpet-player/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [You have to practice for a long time before you can learn to sound like yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/you-have-to-practice-for-a-long-time-before-you-can-learn-to-sound/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [There are no wrong notes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/there-are-no-wrong-notes/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [Knowledge is freedom and ignorance is slavery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/knowledge-is-freedom-and-ignorance-is-slavery/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [I began to realize that some of the things Ornette Coleman had said about things being played three or fours ways, independently of each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/i-began-to-realize-that-some-of-the-things-ornette-coleman-had-said/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [...people will go for anything they don't understand if it's got enough hype. They want to be hip, want always to be in on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/people-will-go-for-anything-they-don-t-understand-if-it-s-got-enough/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [If you're trying to be hip, be hip.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/if-you-re-trying-to-be-hip-be-hip/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [My father's rich, my momma's good looking. Right? And I can play the Blues. I've never suffered and don't intend to suffer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/my-father-s-rich-my-momma-s-good-looking-right-and-i-can-play-the/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [I'm out there doing the best that I can, My lip is cut and I'm still playing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/i-m-out-there-doing-the-best-that-i-can-my-lip-is-cut-and-i-m-still/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [When I'm playing, I'm never through. It's unfinished. I like to find a place to leave for someone else to finish it. That's where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/when-i-m-playing-i-m-never-through-it-s-unfinished-i-like-to-find-a/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [ \[Prince\] could very well be the Duke Ellington of Rock 'n' Roll. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/prince-could-very-well-be-the-duke-ellington-of-rock-n-roll/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [I can tell whether a person can play just by the way he stands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/i-can-tell-whether-a-person-can-play-just-by-the-way-he-stands/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [Do not fear mistakes. There are none.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/do-not-fear-mistakes-there-are-none/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [You can't compete with Sweets' sound and time feel. It's impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/you-can-t-compete-with-sweets-sound-and-time-feel-it-s-impossible/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

[Explore all 204 Miles Davis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

## More Accidents quotes

> [Almost all accidents take place because of human distraction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-thrun/almost-all-accidents-take-place-because-of-human-distraction/)

[Sebastian Thrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-thrun/)

> [It was no accident, no coincidence, that the seasons came round and round year after year. It was the Lord speaking to us all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-rivers/it-was-no-accident-no-coincidence-that-the-seasons-came-round-and/)

[Francine Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-rivers/)

> [No, I think most astronauts recognize that the space shuttle program is very high-risk, and are prepared for accidents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-ride/no-i-think-most-astronauts-recognize-that-the-space-shuttle-program/)

[Sally Ride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-ride/)

> [In presenting a mathematical argument the great thing is to give the educated reader the chance to catch on at once to the momentary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-edensor-littlewood/in-presenting-a-mathematical-argument-the-great-thing-is-to-give-the/)

[John Edensor Littlewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-edensor-littlewood/)

> [The only way to have a funeral is to invite everyone who ever knew the person and just wait for the accident to happen-somebody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/the-only-way-to-have-a-funeral-is-to-invite-everyone-who-ever-knew/)

[Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/)

> [Good films are not made by accident, nor is good photography. You can have good things happen, on occasion, by accident that can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-willis/good-films-are-not-made-by-accident-nor-is-good-photography-you-can/)

[Gordon Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-willis/)

> [By education I am an Englishman, by views an internationalist, by culture a Muslim and a Hindu only by accident of birth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jawaharlal-nehru/by-education-i-am-an-englishman-by-views-an-internationalist-by/)

[Jawaharlal Nehru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jawaharlal-nehru/)

> [I made out with a homeless guy by accident. I had no idea -- he was really tan, he had no shoes on. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-schumer/i-made-out-with-a-homeless-guy-by-accident-i-had-no-idea-he-was/)

[Amy Schumer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-schumer/)

> [Naturally I feel no shame in writing these things because of the time which separates the moment when they are written--when only I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-ernaux/naturally-i-feel-no-shame-in-writing-these-things-because-of-the-time/)

[Annie Ernaux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-ernaux/)

> [In a city where you walk around, it's impossible to plan your day and your life as accidents will happen, you'll overhear things, bump…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-schwartzman/in-a-city-where-you-walk-around-it-s-impossible-to-plan-your-day-and/)

[Jason Schwartzman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-schwartzman/)

> [I don't think it's by accident that I was first attracted to translating two French women poets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-hacker/i-don-t-think-it-s-by-accident-that-i-was-first-attracted-to/)

[Marilyn Hacker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-hacker/)

> [Despite my mentors advice that I would never go to heaven fishing with a weighted nymph and a float, I took it up. (As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-bishop/despite-my-mentors-advice-that-i-would-never-go-to-heaven-fishing/)

[Tony Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-bishop/)

> [Dont stand outside in a lightning shower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/padraig/dont-stand-outside-in-a-lightning-shower/)

[Padraig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/padraig/)

> [In the eyes of those lovers of perfection, a work is never finished a word that for them has no sense but abandoned; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/in-the-eyes-of-those-lovers-of-perfection-a-work-is-never-finished-a/)

[Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/)

> [My musical career was an accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sade-adu/my-musical-career-was-an-accident/)

[Sade Adu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sade-adu/)

[Browse all 1,971 Accidents quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accidents/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "A lot of people ask me where music is going today. I think it's going in short phrases. If you listen, anybody with an ear can hear that. Music is always changing. It changes because of the times and the technology that's available, the material that things are made of, like plastic cars instead of steel. So when you hear an accident today it sounds different, not all the metal colliding like it was in the forties and fifties. Musicians pick up sounds and incorporate that into their playing, so the music that they make will be different.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Miles Davis"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/a-lot-of-people-ask-me-where-music-is-going-today-i-think-it-s-going/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Accidents"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/a-lot-of-people-ask-me-where-music-is-going-today-i-think-it-s-going/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/miles-davis-1842_accidents_a-lot-of-people-ask-me-where-music-is-go_2981873.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/miles-davis-1842_accidents_a-lot-of-people-ask-me-where-music-is-go_2981873.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ea8/miles-davis-1842_accidents_a-lot-of-people-ask-me-where-music-is-go_2981873.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“A lot of people ask me where music is going today. I think it's going in short phrases. If you listen…” — Miles Davis",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Miles Davis",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "A lot of people ask me...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/a-lot-of-people-ask-me-where-music-is-going-today-i-think-it-s-going/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/a-lot-of-people-ask-me-where-music-is-going-today-i-think-it-s-going/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
