--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Don't worry about playing a lot of notes…" description: "\"Don't worry about playing a lot of notes. Just find one pretty one.\" — Miles Davis" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/717/miles-davis-1842_jazz_don-t-worry-about-playing-a-lot-of-notes_1163244.jpg" --- # Don't worry about playing a lot of notes. Just find one… ![“Don't worry about playing a lot of notes. Just find one pretty one.” quote by Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/717/miles-davis-1842_jazz_don-t-worry-about-playing-a-lot-of-notes_1163244.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/717/miles-davis-1842_jazz_don-t-worry-about-playing-a-lot-of-notes_1163244.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/717/miles-davis-1842_jazz_don-t-worry-about-playing-a-lot-of-notes_1163244.jpg) > “Don't worry about playing a lot of notes. Just find one pretty one.” [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. Focus on a single beautiful note rather than many notes. **In simple terms:** One pretty note matters more than many. Key Takeaway Prioritize quality over quantity in music. Themes simplicity beauty focus Mood contemplative inspirational Type musical philosophical When to use this quote - solo improvisation - composition - teaching music Key Concepts melodic expression musical minimalism Questions to Reflect On - How does restraint enhance expression? - When is simplicity most effective? A Different Perspective Risk of missing complexity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Jazz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jazz/) [Just Pretty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just-pretty-360306/) [Notes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/notes/) [Notes Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/notes-just-1147912/) [Playing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/playing/) [Pretty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pretty/) [Worry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worry/) [Worry Playing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worry-playing-1026584/) ## Related quotes > [I just worry about playing well and helping Liverpool go as far as possible in the Premier League. If that is achieved by me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-firmino/i-just-worry-about-playing-well-and-helping-liverpool-go-as-far-as/) [Roberto Firmino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-firmino/) > [As you get older, you realise you can't worry about mistakes; you just worry about playing, and I've been doing that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alun-wyn-jones/as-you-get-older-you-realise-you-can-t-worry-about-mistakes-you-just/) [Alun Wyn Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alun-wyn-jones/) > [“It wasn’t enough that I had to worry about playing well and winning the game, but I also had to deal with possibility that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/weston-locher/it-wasn-t-enough-that-i-had-to-worry-about-playing-well-and-winning/) [Weston Locher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/weston-locher/) > [Do not worry about not holding high position; worry rather about playing your proper role. Worry not that no one knows of you; seek…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/do-not-worry-about-not-holding-high-position-worry-rather-about/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [It's nice to worry about playing golf and not all the other stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-daly/it-s-nice-to-worry-about-playing-golf-and-not-all-the-other-stuff/) [John Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-daly/) > [No, I don't think you can ever worry about playing not to get hurt. I think that's when you get hurt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-vogel/no-i-don-t-think-you-can-ever-worry-about-playing-not-to-get-hurt-i/) [Frank Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-vogel/) > [There are no wrong notes; some are just more right than others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thelonious-monk/there-are-no-wrong-notes-some-are-just-more-right-than-others/) [Thelonious Monk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thelonious-monk/) > [Your work is ingenious. It's quality work. And there are simply too many notes, that's all. Just cut a few and it will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-ii-holy-roman-emperor/your-work-is-ingenious-it-s-quality-work-and-there-are-simply-too/) [Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-ii-holy-roman-emperor/) > [ “...\[R\]ead a great deal of the works you enjoy most. Much of it will be useless. But the trusty unconscious can be relied on… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-l-moore/r-ead-a-great-deal-of-the-works-you-enjoy-most-much-of-it-will-be/) [C.L. Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-l-moore/) > [Being in TV is insane. The notes you get sometimes, I just don't understand them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-hill/being-in-tv-is-insane-the-notes-you-get-sometimes-i-just-don-t/) [Jonah Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-hill/) > [“Emperor Joseph II: My dear young man, don't take it too hard. Your work is ingenious. It's quality work. And there are simply too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-shaffer/emperor-joseph-ii-my-dear-young-man-don-t-take-it-too-hard-your-work/) [Peter Shaffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-shaffer/) > [Way back in my mid-20s, I started making notes. I would just jot things down: lists of street names, songs, peculiar turns of speech,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/way-back-in-my-mid-20s-i-started-making-notes-i-would-just-jot-things/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I'm playing all the right notes, just not necessarily in the right order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-morecambe/i-m-playing-all-the-right-notes-just-not-necessarily-in-the-right/) [Eric Morecambe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-morecambe/) > [There are only a few notes. Just variations on a theme.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennon/there-are-only-a-few-notes-just-variations-on-a-theme/) [John Lennon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennon/) > [Just because she's pretty doesn't mean your ugly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonyaboo/just-because-she-s-pretty-doesn-t-mean-your-ugly/) [Sonyaboo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonyaboo/) ## 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 Jazz quotes > [When you listen to someone improvise, the notes that are played are only half the story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-laws/when-you-listen-to-someone-improvise-the-notes-that-are-played-are/) [Hubert Laws](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-laws/) > [I wasn't into jazz so much - I preferred things raw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-page/i-wasn-t-into-jazz-so-much-i-preferred-things-raw/) [Jimmy Page](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-page/) > [Growing up in Iceland, it was very beautiful, very safe, but quite isolated. There was something about jazz music that had a way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laufey/growing-up-in-iceland-it-was-very-beautiful-very-safe-but-quite/) [Laufey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laufey/) > [I didn't plan on rock-n-roll. I wanted to learn jazz; I got to know some people doing rock-n-roll with jazz, and I thought I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robby-krieger/i-didn-t-plan-on-rock-n-roll-i-wanted-to-learn-jazz-i-got-to-know/) [Robby Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robby-krieger/) > [Jazz is not something that can be defined through blunt instruments. It is much more poetic than that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-metheny/jazz-is-not-something-that-can-be-defined-through-blunt-instruments/) [Pat Metheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-metheny/) > [When I was playing piano, it was like, 'I'm going to write a song using all the white keys.' My music director, who knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-tesh/when-i-was-playing-piano-it-was-like-i-m-going-to-write-a-song-using/) [John Tesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-tesh/) > [Jazz is the music of the body. The breath comes through brass. It is the body's breath, and the strings' wails and moans are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/jazz-is-the-music-of-the-body-the-breath-comes-through-brass-it-is/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Bruce Katz is a spectacular talent! He's a brilliant composer and arranger who uses uncommon and unique musical intelligence to redefine jazz and blues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-coryell/bruce-katz-is-a-spectacular-talent-he-s-a-brilliant-composer-and/) [Larry Coryell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-coryell/) > [I think we've all had enough of Coltrane saxophonists. There's a case of someone ruining a generation of saxophonists, as Louis Armstrong may have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-bley/i-think-we-ve-all-had-enough-of-coltrane-saxophonists-there-s-a-case/) [Paul Bley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-bley/) > [Where human eyes have never seen, where human beings have never been, I build a world of abstract dreams, and I wait for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-ra/where-human-eyes-have-never-seen-where-human-beings-have-never-been-i/) [Sun Ra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-ra/) > [It's bluesy, rocky jazz. I call it soul music, but it's not James Brown soul music. It comes from my soul. It comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tinsel-korey/it-s-bluesy-rocky-jazz-i-call-it-soul-music-but-it-s-not-james-brown/) [Tinsel Korey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tinsel-korey/) > [I listen to classical music very much. There's a lot of jazz that I don't enjoy listening to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-konitz/i-listen-to-classical-music-very-much-there-s-a-lot-of-jazz-that-i/) [Lee Konitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-konitz/) > [My influences are jazz, blues, European classical music; they are rock music and pop music. So many kinds of music. World music from different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rokia-traore/my-influences-are-jazz-blues-european-classical-music-they-are-rock/) [Rokia Traore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rokia-traore/) > [Trombone virtuoso and innovative composer, Papo combines the best of jazz and Latin music to create a genre that is unique and wild. He's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-brecker/trombone-virtuoso-and-innovative-composer-papo-combines-the-best-of/) [Michael Brecker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-brecker/) > [My roots are in classical music and jazz, and I want the freedom of being able to improvise. This freedom is possible only in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adnan-sami/my-roots-are-in-classical-music-and-jazz-and-i-want-the-freedom-of/) [Adnan Sami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adnan-sami/) [Browse all 3,027 Jazz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jazz/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Don't worry about playing a lot of notes. 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