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A formula found often in nature, many artists believe that following the golden ratio leads to the most aesthetically pleasing work. It can also accidentally turn up in musicals.
Soul and R&B legend Sam Moore performs at the 2009 Nakusp Music Festival in Nakusp, B.C.
(Richard Vignola/Flickr)
There is a history of exploiting Black musicians in the United States that dates back to slavery. But movements like Black Lives Matters are working towards economic justice.
Reveling in dislike can give us a modicum of control in a world that inundates us with content.
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Loudly proclaiming your dislikes isn’t snobbery. There can be a power and poetry to putrescence.
Prince on stage at the 2007 Superbowl during his famous half-time performance.
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Ahead of the release of the artist’s posthumous album, a sense of awe and mystery around his huge archive of unreleased music remains
Nigerian musician Fela Kuti performs in Chicago in the US.
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Fela’s nomination and possible induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will come at a cost.
Some children with autism have learned to express themselves emotionally through music.
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Some children with autism struggle to express how they feel, but research shows music can help them develop better emotional skills.
Looking for the meaning of Lil Nas X’s latest video? The detail is in the devil.
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The video for Lil Nas X’s latest track is provocative and erotic. It also fits into a tradition of turning the tables on those seeking to oppress marginalized groups through religious dogma.
Algorithms help lots of people discover new music.
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Music recommendation algorithms are more likely to suggest music by male than female artists.
Virginia Woolf listened to a wide variety of music, including Russian ballet music which she heard when the Ballets Russes visited London in 1912.
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Woolf thought of her books as music before she wrote them so it is unsurprising that her writing influenced the work of composers.
Playlists curated by major music streaming platforms tend to reduce the revenue of smaller artists.
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Most of your Spotify subscription fee goes to pop stars in curated playlists – even if you never listen to them.
It’s not just old cassettes that are selling: the current crop of pop musicians are shifting their music on tapes, too.
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Cassette tapes are in again – and this time, it’s smaller artists who look likely to gain.
Bunny Wailer performing in Las Vegas in 2016.
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The last original Wailer may have died, but the musician’s lasting influence on music is clear
Hip-hop professor A.D. Carson.
Dan Addison
Can college professors rap their way into academic publishing? One professor makes an album to prove they can.
A Liverpool busker in July 2020.
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Performances could return sooner than planned if cities are ready to adapt.
Prisoners are forced to play music as they lead a fellow prisoner to his execution at the Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria.
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Music is supposed to transcend the mundane and horrific. Yet it has also served as an accompaniment to torture and punishment.
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Daft Punk’s anonymity was really a stroke of genius.
Femi Kuti performing in Mexico City in 2019.
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The truth remains that no artist through Nigeria’s postcolonial years has contributed close to what Fela did – and continues to do - for human rights and social justice.
It was better in the old days.
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Memories are closely linked with music.
Rapturous falsetto voices are heard in the new HBO documentary ‘The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart.’
(HBO)
Falsetto male pop and opera artists fascinate us with their high voices, but it’s also intriguing to know anyone can find a falsetto sound.
The Weeknd performs at the 2020 American Music Awards on Nov. 22 in Los Angeles.
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Over the past year, the singer has carefully constructed a visage that has made him nearly unrecognizable.