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Orchestra
Greensleeves: the folk melody behind Vaughan Williams' Fantasia

Greensleeves is one of the best-known English folk melodies, first published in 1580 as a broadside ballad titled A…

May 24, 2022
Sarod
Amjad Ali Khan: the revered classical player whose ancestors canonized the sarod

Ustad Amjad Ali Khan is among the most honored Indian virtuosos whose musical skill was nurtured in the tradition of…

May 12, 2022
Songwriter
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out: nonsensical song title that reveals Springsteen's band origin story

Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out was first released on Bruce Springsteen's breakthrough album Born to Run and remains one of his…

May 10, 2022
Music Theory
Mixolydian mode in Pink Floyd songs

The Western music theory as we know it traditionally uses three major diatonic scales. Each scale's harmonic structure…

April 29, 2022
Songwriter
Pedro Navaja: song meaning and origin of the lyrics

Pedro Navaja is a true pop culture statement of a song written by Panamanian Latin-jazz musician Rubén Blades and…

April 25, 2022
Piano
Estampes: the world cultures of Debussy's imagination

Estampes, conceived as a three-piece piano suite by the French Impressionist Claude Debussy, is rightfully recognized…

February 17, 2022
Nature Sounds
Spring soundscapes featuring a song thrush

Of all the songbirds in the northern hemisphere, the nightingale clearly stands out for its deep vocal overtones and…

February 15, 2022
Songwriter
Rhiannon: The Fleetwood Mac song that made the list of popular girls' names

Rhiannon is one of the best-known Fleetwood Mac tracks originally recorded for their 1975 eponymous album and released…

February 3, 2022
Music Theory
Beatles songs composed with just three primary chords

The harmonic analysis of The Beatles' output reveals their particular devotion to the Ionian mode, which is found in…

February 1, 2022
Songwriter
La Mordidita: meaning behind the three-chord Latin hit

La Mordidita is a notable Latin dance hit released by Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin in 2015. The song was written by…

January 20, 2022
Choir
Ave verum corpus: influential Mozart score for the crucial Catholic chant

Ave verum corpus is one of the best-known sacramental chants that originated in the Medieval period and has since been…

January 18, 2022
Meditation
Vinayagar Agaval: medieval lyrics linking Ganesha with yoga practice

Vinayagar Agaval is a popular sacred hymn of South India praising Ganesh—one of the most worshipped deities in the…

January 6, 2022
Songwriter
Carolina in the Pines: origins of Michael Murphey's love song

Carolina in the Pines is a seminal track by Michael Murphey, a highly influential country-genre artist with over thirty…

January 4, 2022
Music Theory
The Doors songs with Aeolian and harmonic minor modes

Known since the Baroque era, the homophonic texture remains the most convenient songwriting technique based on the…

December 24, 2021
Collaboration
Súbeme la Radio: meaning and harmony behind the hot dance hit

Súbeme la Radio is a 2017 Latin dance track recorded by Spanish singer Enrique Iglesias in collaboration with Cuban…

December 22, 2021
Piano
Je te veux: Satie's love song refashioned as piano piece

Je te veux is one of the best-known pieces by the French Romantic composer Erik Satie, famous for popularizing his…

December 9, 2021
Nature Sounds
Relaxing magic of a spring thunderstorm recorded in the woods

It is no secret that regular listening to records with sounds of pristine nature contributes to relaxation and stress…

December 7, 2021
Songwriter
Rhinestone Cowboy: origins of Glen Campbell's best-known track

Rhinestone Cowboy is a notable country track that hit the tops of global charts in the 1970s, extending beyond the…

November 27, 2021
Music Theory
Lydian mode in Led Zeppelin songs

The musical output of the English rock band Led Zeppelin can be confidently classified as classically oriented. More…

November 23, 2021
Collaboration
Vente Pa' Ca: surprising harmony behind Ricky Martin's party song

Vente Pa' Ca is a 2016 dance track recorded by award-winning Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin featuring Colombian urban…

November 13, 2021