Honestly, I didn't have the patience for biology or history in an academic sense, but I always liked the kind of big questions.
Andrew BirdThe instrumental record is a bit subtler. It's the kind of stuff on sound check, when I first pick up my violin and start to play, the kind of melodies that just pour out of me. Some of them sound very classical. Some of them sound experimental, polyrhythmic loops that I make.
Andrew BirdWhat you see with your eyes when you're making music is going to have a profound effect on what you hear.
Andrew BirdWell, my main instrument is violin, but I think of myself as a songwriter who happens to play violin.
Andrew BirdI think jazz was just seeking respect and validity because a lot of people didn't believe it was a viable art form, and then they got a lot of attention in Europe. A lot of bands that can't catch flies in the US have these followings in Europe, [but] it's less and less the case. American audiences are way more sophisticated and adventurous than anyone thinks that they are.
Andrew Bird