Philosophy Science Psychology Society Culture

DonateNewsletterSIGN IN

Music

Essays and videos on the arts, literature, travel, rituals and celebrations

Architecture Art Biography and memoir Dance and theatre Design and fashion Film and visual culture Food and drink Home Music Nature and landscape Rituals and celebrations Sports and games Stories and literature Subcultures Travel

Explore more Culture

3D heat map graph with peaks in red and valleys in blue showing data variation.

videoMusic

A riveting audiovisual dive into what makes sounds harmonious, or not

28 minutes

Photo of a woman in a red coat gazing out a foggy window with a contemplative expression.

videoProgress and modernity

Moving from Tibet to Beijing, Drolma reconciles big dreams with harsh realities

31 minutes

Black and white photo of a group of men playing musical instruments and sitting in a wooden room.

essayMusic

The beat of goombay

Diasporas are made of vast constellations of countless people, fused together through memory, meaning – and music

Salwa Halloway

Fisheye photo of a man in a suit leaning close to camera in a laundrette, with two people talking in the background.

videoGender

A catchy tune explains the world’s ‘isms’ – according to your mum doing the laundry

5 minutes

Abstract painting with geometric shapes, lines and circles in various colours on a beige background.

videoBeauty and aesthetics

Can you see music in this painting? How synaesthesia fuelled Kandinsky’s art

10 minutes

Painting of people playing dodgeball around a square pool with ripples in vibrant colours, long shadows cast on the ground.

videoFilm and visual culture

A lush animated opus evokes the frenzied pace of modern life

4 minutes

A person in a workshop uses a tool to smooth wood. Wood shavings are scattered on the workbench.

videoMaking

Forging a cello from pieces of wood demands its own form of virtuosity

27 minutes

A man playing a piano in a dark room with animated planets and stars floating around him, illuminated by soft light.

videoPhysics

The rhythms of a star system inspire a pianist’s transfixing performance

5 minutes

Close-up of a person with glasses playing the violin, illuminated by colourful lights in the background.

videoPleasure and pain

The volunteer musicians who perform in the aftermath of violence and tragedy

12 minutes

Still life with musical instruments, sheet music, books, and a small statue on a table draped with a richly patterned red and gold curtain.

essayMusic

A novel kind of music

So-called ‘classical’ music was as revolutionary as the modern novel in its storytelling, harmony and depth

Joel Sandelson

A black-and-white photo of a group of men sitting close together, some with mouths open as if singing or speaking. In the blurry background, additional people are seated around a table. The scene appears to be inside a room with a warm, communal atmosphere.

essayMusic

Folk music was never green

Don’t be swayed by the sound of environmental protest: these songs were first sung in the voice of the cutter, not the tree

Richard Smyth

Watercolour painting of a landscape with a vivid yellow sky, a band of orange clouds, and a purple mountain. The foreground is dark with indistinct foliage.

videoMusic

The peculiar beauty of a song caught between composition and improvisation

3 minutes

Close-up of an elderly Hmong man with grey eyebrows, holding a traditional instrument to his lips, and a pensive expression on his wrinkled face against a dark background.

videoLanguage and linguistics

Messages born of melody – hear the whistled language of the Hmong people

18 minutes

Painting of a person holding a conductor’s baton standing on rocks with arms raised, facing away towards a sunrise or sunset over distant mountains in a misty, pastel-coloured landscape.

videoMusic

‘Dun dun dun duuun!’ Why Beethoven’s Fifth sticks in the head and stirs the heart

5 minutes

A group of people dancing energetically in pairs on a dimly lit outdoor pavement, casting long shadows.

videoMood and emotion

An Oceanic lullaby, ‘Gimme Shelter’ and more elucidate how music taps into our emotions

58 minutes

A close up picture of hands playing a silver brass flute with a shallow depth of field such that the foreground fingers and keys are more in focus

essayMusic

To the tune of dystonia

One day, my hand stopped speaking to my brain. As a doctor and flute player, I had to understand this strange affliction

Lynn Hallarman

A person in a red jumpsuit playing the trumpet, causing flames along a metal tube to create visible sound waves.

videoPhysics

A song of ice, fire and jelly – exploring the physics and history of the trumpet

9 minutes

essayFilm and visual culture

Fighting kung fu

From chopsocky films to disco earworms, Asian caricatures have proliferated since the 1970s. Can Hollywood kick the habit?

Stephanie Wong

Three orange spheres create trails on a sparkling, metallic surface, casting long shadows. The background shimmers in shades of copper and gold.

videoPhysics

A dreamy tribute to the music of Brian Eno, rendered in paint, soap and water

2 minutes

Person with tattooed arms wearing a spiked, leather arm brace connected with cables and finger straps, a piece of custom technology.

videoMusic

Electronic gloves and even potted plants make music in a playground for sound innovation

6 minutes

Close-up of wood grain with concentric rings and natural variations in colour and texture.

videoBiology

A dazzling slice-by-slice exploration of wood exposes hidden patterns and hues

2 minutes

A man playing a Yamaha piano with headphones on. Abstract, white ribbon-like lines float above, on a black background.

videoMusic

As a pianist strikes a chord, visualisations of his notes appear in real time

5 minutes

Image of a Roland TR-808 drum machine with various knobs, buttons, and coloured pads, used for creating rhythmic patterns in music production.

essayMusic

Give the drummer some

As AI drum machines embrace humanising imperfections, what does this mean for ‘real’ drummers and the soul of music?

Jack Stilgoe

A conductor passionately leads an orchestra, holding a baton in one hand and gesturing with the other, with a focused expression in a dimly lit venue.

essayMusic

Enter the conductrice

Will a new generation of women on the podium perpetuate the tyrannical charisma of their male predecessors or overturn it?

Xenia Hanusiak