Dr. Victoria Williamson still remembers the first time she saw the brain scan of someone who was listening to their favorite piece of music. The scan showed a scene of intense activation — it looked like the entire brain was lit up and buzzing. The moment confirmed something she’s always believed and has since spent…
So you’ve been checking out some piano lessons online (shameless plug: our beginner piano courses are totally free!) and you’ve decided to dive into the deep end. Congratulations! You’re taking the first major step toward complete keyboard wizardry! Here are some quick tips to help you on your way to buying the best instrument for your lifestyle…
Japan is one of the best places to share your music. If you weren’t already planning your tour there when this article popped up, you might as well start now! I just got off the plane not three hours ago, and looking back it was the best tour of my life. Let me share with…
Perhaps inspired by the recent rash of high-profile copyright cases, a bunch of our favorite music blogs have lately been providing interesting tips for legally recording and performing covers of other musician’s songs. Unlike the more complicated forms of musical imitation involved in those lawsuits, covering a song is actually quite straightforward. A “cover” is a new performance of…
Setting up a proper workspace can make practice time infinitely more productive — at least, it definitely did for me. Here’s a list of things to keep at hand when you’re honing your craft. 1. A notebook Okay, so it doesn’t necessarily have to be a literal notebook (though I personally feel pretty tied to…
A soundwalk can be a lot of things. It can require headphones as easily as it can require that you take them off and listen to your surroundings. It can be experienced on an actual walk, guiding you through a live excursion, or it can be listened to as a standalone piece in the comfort…
We recently found this fantastic piece on how musical improvisation affects the brain on Vicky Williamson’s blog Music Psychology and she graciously allowed us to post it here. Vicky teaches and researches on the relationship between music and the brain at The University of Sheffield. Check out more of her writing here. Hello Dear Reader, It is…
A couple weeks ago I got an email out of the blue from Sophie Chernin of Brooklyn band Madam West. Little did I know at the time that I was just part of her daily ritual—send one press email, one booking email, and one studio or engineer email every day. In fact, the more I…
There is only one single copy of the Wu-Tang Clan’s newest album, The Wu – Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, that has seen the light of day. The Wu-Tang Clan will auction this handcrafted album off after an international museum listening tour, and bids are already coming in exceeding $5 million. This single copy is encased in a…
The music world is up in arms. In case you’ve been living under a rock, here’s what happened: Last week a jury decided that Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams had violated the copyright of Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give It Up” with their hit song “Blurred Lines”. The song made $16.67 million dollars, so the songwriters…
