Legendary bluesman B.B. King died yesterday, and we’ll miss him. His bright, bouncy guitar licks and gospel-influenced vocals were iconic — even if you hadn’t listened to him in a while, his music was universal. Dig deep enough and everyone has a B.B. King memory. King was our last living thread to the golden age of Mississippi…
Happy Friday! This week was full of musical announcements and discoveries from around the internet. Read on for our round up of the latest news on the music industry, crazy music videos, a spring reading list, and the smooth stylings of a young Bruce Willis! 1. Turmoil in Streaming Music Billboard: Sony pulled all their…
We at Soundfly love the piano. In many ways, it’s the Mother of Modern Instruments, a musical Khaleesi that’s ruled the stage for hundreds of years. Since its birth in the 1700s, the piano has appeared in almost every style of music you can think of — jazz, rock, classical, blues, cat music — and been played…
Happy Friday! Some of our all-time favorite musical combinations come from artists referencing their idols or putting songs and styles they love into their own musical voice. This week we found remixes and covers all over the web, resulting in genre-bending collaborations that have turned music we thought we knew into something else entirely. Check out Guns…
The guzheng (古筝) is one of my favorite instruments in the world. An ancient Chinese plucked-string instrument, today it’s featured prominently in both classical Chinese and modern international compositions. I think of the guzheng as a perfectly balanced mix between a harp and a zither. + Read more: Curious what the heck a theremin, shruti box, djembe, or glockenspiel…
I love jazz. I love playing jazz, listening to jazz, shedding jazz, and talking with other people who love jazz, about jazz. I recently released, with my group the PLS.trio, a new modern jazz record in the style of greats such as Pat Metheny and Esbjorn Svensson. According to a review by All About Jazz, our music takes…
Happy Friday! This week turned out to be a nostalgic one here at Soundfly HQ — so many of my submissions came from the archives! We spent the beginning of the week exploring the history of Abbey Road, found out mid-week about the Full House reunion, and just yesterday stumbled across the Cher, Elton John, and Bette Midler…
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…
Happy Friday! Can you 3D print music? What does a Wikipedia update sound like? What does Bowie’s “Life on Mars” look like? This week we found answers to all these questions and more. Hearing music in the distinctly non-musical is a fascinating source of inspiration and has led to some stunning creations. Also, we have David Hasselhoff’s latest hit…
Happy Friday! This week’s edition of Off Notes is coming to you from Japan, where the masterminds behind Soundfly’s “Touring on a Shoestring” course have booked a tour of their very own (and where this Soundflyer tagged along in search of weird and wonderful goodies to spice up your Friday afternoon!). So read on for a (mostly) Asian-inspired…
