An excellent first Pandora podcast. 20 Minute Loop is one of my 3 favorite SF bands and I dug the insights presented.

A pause feature on the "Listen Now" would rock.

Awesome! I'll keep looking for these!

Thanks for the lesson. I'm not a music major, but enjoy singing and learning about different techniques, sounds, etc. Keep up the good work!

Great! Looking forward to the upcoming titles!

Hi, very interesting podcast. I thought I would also cite K's Choice as well as a very good example of vocal harmonies. One of their song in particular, Iron flower uses the technique of call and response and tutti and counterpoint (to the point you could suppress one of the two voices and make two different song out of it). For unison, I thought at once of Jose Gonsalez that used this technique a lot in his album Veneer (for instance in the praised Heartbeats) but that's multitracking.
Am looking forward to the next one !

Congratulations on you great podcast!
It was very interesting to learn some things about vocal harmony, and to now be able to give reasons for why I love certain songs.
Hope that... in your future podcast installments... you'll get to exemplify/explain all the other "hundreds of attributes".

Till then...
THANK YOU PANDORA

I think that a podcast that is based on musical elements is a great idea, particularly from a recognized authority on music and it's elements. Being a music therapy major at ASU, it is a refreshing new experience to have a relevant podcast out there.

Thanks guys,
~Keith

Excellent first Podcast. I look forward to more in the future.

Thank you for everything, Pandora!

This is a really great idea. I love to hear about why you've decided to play a song just for me, but even after reading the greatly expanded FAQ, I don't always have a clear idea.

One suggestion -- can you mix the talking and the musical examples so the volume is more constant? I'm trying to listen to this on speakers at work, and if I have it up loud enough to hear the talking, the music blares out, but if I turn it down for the music examples, the words turn into "mutter mutter murmur murmur."

your concept is new fresh and very exciting.Please don't change a thing

wow, that was great! Thanks guys. I look forward to a lot more of these :)

Whoa. I got a good idea of the different styles from looking at the song list, what a great "extra."
I can hardly wait until the next installment.

Thanks

j

p.s. Is the ultimate goal to turn us all into music analysts? Fine by me.

Cool! Very entertaining yet informative. Keep it up guys.. :-)

Thank you for listening. What kinds of topics might you want to hear covered in future podcasts? We're all ears.

Hi ! I left a comment but I don't see it here... Just so I know, do you make a selection of them ?

I'd love to hear you do the same kind of thing with different parts of the genome so we can get a better idea of what you listen for.

Also I wouldn't mind hearing you review or compare/contrast songs you are currently adding the catalog, kind of "All Songs Considered" style on NPR.

dude, your podcast is awesome. and the wans was just great.
can i work with u? please?

That was great. It reveals part of the genome, is educational and both pleasant and interesting to listen to. I look forward to more.

I second the call for 'casts on the different "genes". Perhaps cover three each time? I mean, I think I understand what Vamping is but I didn't know existed until I discovered Pandora.

Also, a series on different instruments might be fun. I know that seems rather basic but a lot goes on in a song that non-musicians *hear* but might not *listen* to until someone points it out to us. Ie. How the use/type of snare drum affects an arrangment.

A look at the development/history of sub-genres of music would be interesting. Finally, so far as I'm concerned you can get as "theory-ish" as you want. Music Theory wrecked my GPA in college and I'm still determined to master this subject.

Provided there isn't a test at the end.

j

:D That is sooooo kewl! I write music myself, and I use those same concept when I write them. The thing is; I didn't know that what I was doing had names. Lol. I taught myself to play the piano when I was 7/8 yrs old so I didn't know what was what to make what. I used my ears and my voice to with the "keyboard" to make something that blended. The I started trying to remake the song that others made to learn some other ways that notes mix. So this is very kewl to know that each style I used has a name for it. I hope you keep the site up for a while because I want to go back and listen to them again and wright down the Names of them. :D
Thank you again!

As a member of a women's a cappella group the "science" of harmony is of great interest to me - & this was a wondeful cross section!
What a great start for your Pandora Podcast!!!! Thanks, I will keep my eyes & ears peeled for more!

Very well done and informative--Thank you!

Enjoyed the podcast, looking forward to more.

I love you Pandora!! You're damn sexy...!!
I want you! ***xoxoxo***

I would a Widget that I could post onto my Blog (without steering people away from my blog) and stream Pandora music while people read. Any hope of that coming out?

You are trying to put "tonal values" (sound/music) to go with the words. I wish you would also do the reverse, ie: put different lyrics to go with the sound. Songwriting, I think(as comming from writing poetry), is the union of sound and lyrics. To have a "successful" song,
both must convey the same thematic harmony.

You provide what is needed more in this world. Thank you kindly!

I really have to get more tech savvy and incorporate these into class. I teach elementary music and wouldlove to use bits of thispodcast in class. My skills are lacking, not yours.
Can you do one on voice leading and chord resolution and modulation? That would be fantastic.
Also, genre bending in rock music. Beatles, Oingo Boingo, Chicago King Crimson and a host of others fit that bill.
THANK YOU! Thisismarvellous stuff

Awesome work. I think the analyical approach that makes Pandora such a good service is really put on display quite nicely here. The links to other examples is very informative as well. Length is just about perfect for a podcast, I like how it stayed fairly focused (you didn't dilute the conversation by trying to do too much at once)... I'm really looking forward to more in this series.

Great Job, I've learned A LOT!!! I had no idea of Vocal Harmony. Keep going!

Hi,
Great programme, really interesting and informative, and I'm looking forward to the next installments.
One gripe though - can you make it a proper podcast, not just a downloadable mp3? As I'm sure you appreciate, a podcast is an mp3 accessible through an RSS feed, so a program like Juice or iTunes can check automatically for updates, and download them without the user intervening. As an example:
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/worldservice/digitalplanet/rss.xml
Keep up the good work on the radio station, mind you you're costing me a fortune in CDs!

Hi,
Ignore most of that last post - I've just realised that there *was* an RSS feed on the page, but hidden up in the top corner of the window!

That will teach me to try to code, listen to music, and post comments all at the same time!

I am a fan of many different genres of music, and am really interested in how you apply the Pandora methodology to rap/hip-hop music, where many of the melody/tonal/harmonic elements may not apply.

A podcast on the "genes" that are specific (or most important) to hip-hop would be really cool.

Thanks for everything -- I sincerely believe this is the best site on the web.

Love everything From South-Africa

This is great!
Receantly i've thought about educating myself with some trivial music theory. Unfortunatly it is a problematic topic to learn by text.
I'm hopeful you would carry on with this initiative

u guys should add a umm little option when the artist is playing to check out their biograghy

just a suggestion

<3 thanx 4 the site

great..thanks.
Also, it would be great if the comments went in a new window

love music, but music keeps fading in and out every few miniutes. cant keep up with listening aspect.

I love you guys Ok Love Casi J. Bye,Bye

Very cool! Just got to listen to the 1st podcast @ work (shhhhh)- and it was the most informative 9 minutes of my day!

I thought of why wine tasting is more fun when someone explains what you are about to experience. Then when you know what to look for it makes you appreciate it more!

Hey...does that make Pandora my musical sommelier?

That was amazingly executed, and I wait with great anticipation for the next installment in what is turning into a very educational and interesting podcast. Kudos!

My suggestion for a topic would be how songwriters develop the melodies to go along with their lyrics (or visa-versa if such is the case).

Keep up the great work, and I look forward to future casts...

Perhaps I'm missing something, but is there any way to listen to this in iTunes and have it automatically update like other Podcasts?

This is great. Wouldn't mind at all if you delved into a bit more theory...

:) Excited for your next installment!

I always wonder how harmonies are made. That is very informative. Looking forward to your future podcast.

Sorry, please disregard my comment above. I was trying to add the Podcast in Firefox instead of IE and it wasn't working for some reason.

This is awesome. I'm studying theory in school right now and this is a very helpful supplement to my classes! Thanks Pandora!

Great Idea !

Love those ideas! Keep 'em coming. So far, the main ones I'm seeing:

- a bit more theory (Brian)
- how songwriters develop the melodies to go along with their lyrics, or visa-versa if such is the case (Jake)
- A podcast on the "genes" that are specific (or most important) to hip-hop (Rob)
- a series on different instruments might be fun (Jay)
- voice leading and chord resolution and modulation (Art)
- development/history of sub-genres of music would be interesting... you can get as "theory-ish" as you want (also Jay)

We're working on the next episode right now, so stay tuned. Thanks again.

Awsome, R&B singers/bands that have & are amazing in harmonies are Boyz II men, Destinys child, Jordeci, SWV, Avanti, Jade, you can listen to their music here on Pandora Radio.

Pandora, pandora, keep up the good work.. You are very quickly taking off in the Uk through viral marketing.. I rate you high enough to put your link on my e-mail signature..

Work on those legal eagles, get yourself a physical presence here in London! ASAP! You would have reams and reams of up and comers/ recently signed banging on your door to be added to the content..

If you need some insiders give me a shout..

Toby

(Dont ever stop, we have pandora blaring out in our studio all day)

Great podcast. It was really insightful, interesting, and enjoyable all-round! Keep up the good work Pandora!

Just wanted to say this :
Pandora crew-YOU ARE AbSoLuTeLy GREAT !!

LOVE YOU !!
and thanx for this/these Podcast ((-;p

Nice! podcast subscribed to!

A Pandora podcast! Squee! And about harmony, of all things!

I don't think I have EVER immediately clicked on a "listen now" link for any other podcast. I didn't just listen to this one immediately - I listened twice. Then I subscribed to the feed, and set off to learn more about 20 Minute Loop.

I look forward to hearing more in the future!

Hey you guys, I love Pandora! The podcast however was a little basic and simplified for me, but the idea is great and I found it very exciting being given a lesson by the integrators of "20 Minute Loop", just one of about 20 AWESOME bands in three months of listening I had never even heard about before and gotten to know thanks to PANDORA!
One small suggestion: The Stations tend to play the same songs always; for example I have listened to "Jubilation" by 20 Minute Loop about ten times on the six different stations I have, but there has never been played one of their other songs! Maybe you could fix something there. Love it anyways.

Awesome podcast! I'm hooked and eagerly awaiting more. Can you let us know how often you expect to update?

I'd love a podcast discussing addressing instrumental solos within songs. How do the artists, guitarists for example, approach the development of a solo? Is there a formula?

Hey,

We plan to update about once a month. Stay tuned for our next installment!

This is a fantastic thing for the musically-obsessed non-musician, like me. I used to put up bands travelling to and from the West Coast...lots of good memories of staying up all night and talking music with all kinds of bands. Still, I consider myself one of the uninitiated - I know well what I like, but not the music theory behind my preferences. Pandora's podcasts will become my next addiction...second only to my growing number of Pandora streaming stations.

I can foresee bands clamoring to be involved in presenting the various genomes. What better way to grow your fan base than to teach them how to listen to music? Thanks, 20 Minute Loop and Kevin. You're awesome!

i LOVE you guys!! Brilliant.

I've been working for awhile on developing lessons that illuminate the use of common progressions in modern pop and rock. Across many genres there are so many songs that use I-vi-IV-V (Stand By Me, Every Breath You Take) and I-V-vi-IV (When I Come Around, With Or Without You, a zillion others) progressions... learning to hear these chord relationships was hugely illuminating for me in learning to be a songwriter... anyway, that's my podcast idea. I'll look forward to anything you do however.

I run a Vocal Jazz Workshop (it runs me). After learning jazz harmony theory and singing in a Barbershop chorus for 6 years, I'm trying to combine the two disciplines in an A Cappella workshop to share the experience with others. I'm feeling my way. Your short introduction to Vocal Harmony is a brilliant idea. I'll be passing your url to the rest of my workshop (in fact one of my workshop passed it onto me!).

One suggestion: Cover aspects of tempo and rhythm. Pulse and timeline. What to listen for. Putting words to rhythm as well as to music, so to speak. This goes for all styles and not just for Rap of course.

Thanks

Tom

do one about rhythm or tempo or instrumentation or the significance of production. in music education there is *way* too much emphesis on harmony.

thanks BTW for being one of the coolest things on the net.

It would be great if youd continue with the vocal lesson...who was the one with the brilliant idea!!!
got a new fan here.

Another possible topic: Improvisation.

Very clear and interesting. Thank you!

that's something i had no idea i could find!thanks for the lesson and for helping me discover 2� minutes loop!

My boyfriend is a music major and we both really liked your first podcast, I like how you get into detail and break it down, he as well ejoyed it as well as understood it.... keep them coming.
m

Anyway god is, and you boys are lovely. ciao paolo

THANKS FOR EVERITHING!

muzica excelenta felicite puiu

That was really good. I learnt something. Keep them coming.

I have been in music for years and loved the way you put this together. Awesome illustrations!

Wow! That's worth the hearing, and it put things in a good way! Now I'll pay moree attention to what kind of harmony I can invent while singing!

Very interesting !! It was great..

To be clear: Awsome. I do not gonna say what had been said, bet i'm looking forward to hear podcast n�2! Musical theory can be fun!

I've always enjoyed Beach Boys' harmonies. Now I know what it was I was enjoying.
Super stuff.

Harmony--and how it can go in different directions or with different melodies. Really something to think about for our world situation today.

Very nice job of this. If you didn't actually use them in the piece--rifts like you were referring to could be nice links to listen to.

Now we finally know what we're doing. Brilliant! We wrote a song yesterday and we tried out some of the harmonies. It makes us wonder how much harmonies have to do with our love of certain bands. Next, if you could have a podcast on Chord Theory, we would be thrilled.

This was a great podcast - i've been singing for years and never really thought about how many different types of harmony there are. Thank You for putting together something like this!

Great! Thanks for this!

Congratulations, excellent startup!

Wowhooo~~~~
That's really a great and interesting podcast~
I really like it!
I am not quite good at English,
but what u bought to me still a wonderful feeling~
Aweful job!
keep on~~~~ :)

You're wonderful

Pandora: You. Are. HOT. I love this podcast, and the whole idea of podcasting musical techniques. Hot, hot, HOT!!

and thats just reaaaally cool!

Extremely cool. Great examples of the various methods, though is there any chance you could go into a little more detail in the blog? (Hard to imagine a discussion of counterpoint that doesn't mention J.S. Bach, and CSN mixed a bit of the Polynesian style of call and response in "Southern Cross" along with their tutti harmonies.)

Pandora keeps coming up the goodies.Well done

i have been in the music business for 42yrs as a lead singer,harmonica player,with the uniques, which are still playing together as the original band members. i think your programs are outstanding and i continue to learn no matter how old i get. your harmony twenty minute loop is really a basic learning tool for background singers wanting to learn the basics. thank you for interest in musicians everywhere.

kenny sanders, the uniques.

Very very interesting. I learned alot about harmony. Keep up the good work.

Very interesting. I am a Conservatory of Music graduate, many years ago, but have since abandoned my love of music to pursue a career in law. That said, it is interesting to hear a bunch of talented folks from the Bay Area - where I spent the happiest years in my life, by the way - explain the ground rules.

Very good. Pandora, you are definitely on the right track!

This was great!! I liked the additional examples too. Keep up the good work!!

That is sooooo good!
Next one please....

This is truly interesting - I will be listening so much closer to the vocal parts of my music.

where can i find the podcast in itunes?

This is the kinda stuff I need...(beginner musician at the age of 41!) Breaks it down simple and neat. Thanks!!!!

I have always loved vocal harmony, but I had never heard of harmony being analyzed. I thoroughly enjoyed the podcast. WELL DONE !

It is so amazing how these concepts are used over and over yet we never tire of hearing them. Thanks for the overview. -Sam

Thanks, I loved it! Well done!

THANK'S FOR THE FREE MUSIC ON MY STATIONS THAT PANDORA OPENS UP TOO. YOUR THE BEST !!! SIGNED : JAZZ BUZZBEE !!!!!!!!!!!!

Good+Interesting Programme...
Good'n for all of you guys...

just great. something many of us have been yearning for but didn't know how to ask. by increasing our understanding of music, you have increased our appreciation. well done

what a great idea for all ,especially songwriters and musicians i look forward to hearing more

You should play more of the songs that have a thumbs up that be great

Great! Keep 'em comming!

I enjoyed the podcast and learned a surprising amount. Unfortunately, the samples of the songs that are linked to the discography often don't illustrate the point - eg, the XTC song sample (cited counterpoint) includes only the instrumental intro!

New listener. This segment great. Always interested in "harmony" but had no real understanding of it. Keep 'em coming.

Ilike listening to my favorite songs

Your station is just great, and now with this podcast, you're faboulous. Thanks for helping to explain what harmony is.

Just great, really interesting, simply explained....
I've enjoyed it, hope to more have more like this stuff..
thanks..

I think you are amazing

Thank you for this. I do not know much about music and have learned something new!

Awesome.......as awesome as Pandora itself

An unexpected pleasure... a really good referesher for those of us who need it. I do.

Here's a challenge... explain 'swing' in your next edition. I've heard so many opinions about how it should sound and for those who don't have it, it is very elusive. What's that groove and how do you get it?

Thanks for taking the time and energy.. a really great insight.

Cheers

Ewan

great idea, can you make these easier to subscribe to?

how about podcasts exploring different expressions of a specific instrument...eg infinite guitar, dulcimer, ukelele.... would be fun to here various expressions of a specific sound/instrument

I really enjoyed listening to the podcast and learned a lot about the different types of harmonies.

I liked how you gave examples of popular/well known artists and songs that used each type of harmony.

I did get interrupted more than once while listening and found myself wishing for a pause and rewind option so I didn't have to keep starting over.

Keep up the great work!

Kevin,

This is amazing! I have always wondered how singers managed to get there voices in tune for singing. I have always glued my ear to the speaker to try to listen to the vocalist sing and now I know.....whoohoo! Like the comments before me, don't stop this! There has never been anyone (that I know of) that has taken the interest in helping listeners understand what goes behind the making of a song. Thanks...can't wait for the lesson in music. I think I'm going to practice harmonizing right now.

Very good lesson, thanks.
Can you get more technical about how you choose your music based on a listener's requests?
I'd be very interested in how you store and where you get all your music. Do you ever use records supplied by listeners?
Thanks again.
Pete

More into the 50's jazz, but any education in basic music is great. Love the concept.

Idea for podcast:
A few bands that were especially dynamic and musically gifted but never made it big. What was unique about each.

different piano rhythms that accompany a singer such as elton or the piano man
thanks

really enjoy pandora

It's awesome that you're sharing insights into music's genome through podcasts. 20 Minute Loop was great!

Ideawise, I believe that future podcasts that reveal elements of music -- pitch, keys, rythm structures, dynamics -- will be hugely popular among people like me who love music and maybe don't understand all that goes into it. I foresee listening with a better appreciation of the artists' choices in composing and performing their music.

Very creative... where will you go next? I think elements ( genomes) of analysis will help train the ears of your audience, and make for interesting podcasts at the same time... THANKS

interesting podcast, congratulations.
it's a valid "SUPER-add-on" to the wonderful Music-Genome-Project... and all free!
THANKS

Pandora is the greatest thing to happen to music since radio. This lesson just confirms what a hugely valuable service you are providing to the artists and we, the listening public.

Nice work. Perhaps a future project can be what commonalities work together to make a categorization of a song? Why is a Blues song Blues?

Pandora rules.
DHC

I really liked it. While giving a lesson on vocal harmony you also advertised 20 minute loop, which I have never heard of prior to this!
What a great idea!

eho, i love the dedication to music.
its vital to understand the making of music before judging any songs. although no one likes an over analyser as E.B. White once said "analyzing humor is like dissecting a frog, few are interested and the frog dies of it". its swell, but everything in moderation. keep the beat, i look forward to future free podcasts!

This is realy a great thing, what are you doing is very very good for music lovers. I have a requist, can you expand your lessons to a little classical music too? please?
Ramsey,Riverside, RI

Great! I love it!

Awaiting for the next.

AWESOME! loved it!
what a great first show.
keep them coming!!

HI THERE THANKS FOR CREATING PANDORA IT SUCH A BIG HELP IN HERE IN THE PHILIPPINES I HAVE THE FREEOM TO CHOOSE....HAAHAHA I HAVE THE MACHINE GUN..

HI THERE THANKS FOR CREATING PANDORA IT SUCH A BIG HELP IN HERE IN THE PHILIPPINES I HAVE THE FREEOM TO CHOOSE....HAAHAHA I HAVE THE MACHINE GUN..

way to go!

this is great learning material. :)
Kevin, great host, soothing voice~ you should have more podcasts.
Greg and Kelly~ i'm gonna buy your music.

Long overdue. I've been trying to find something like this for awhile. As a singer-songwriter, it's really cool to hear how other people do things. Keep 'em coming and don't be afraid to get more technical. It would be nice to have a pause/rewind button so that we can re-listen to certain segments without going through the whole thing.

Thank you!!

It was great, but basic. I liked that it was clean; you didn't spread yourself thin, stayed on topic, had a good mood, organized, focused....keep it up. I have to say, I could really take a bit more theory.

Granted, you can't perfectly please everyone. Perhaps your somewhat basic appeal is more suited to the masses. I leave that in your hands.

And thank you so much for opening my world of music with this site in general! I am so indebted to you.

.L

I have been singing most of these styles for years, and not had a clue what they were!

Thanks for the enlightenment.

Eddyg

Excellent!! I live in the midwest and have never heard of "20 minute loop" but definitely enjoyed their sound! Thanks Pandora, as always, you know music! Soon people will just rename "music" as "pandora"! "Did you hear that new pandora on the radio?" }:-)

Please post to the iTunes store.

A great idea for a podcast.

One thing -- PLEASE add stop, fast-forward, and rewind functionality. I happened to browse away from the page, then returned, and I had to listen to the entire first half of the show again, D'OH!

Otherwise, good stuff. So, what's up with the delay in releasing a 2nd cast? Let me know if you're looking for new, home-recorded bands. ;)

-M

Zeer good!

Very cool idea. I am still hoping for some kind of integration of sheet music or tabs with the songs on pandora.com, but in his visit to New York Tim said it wasn't viable. Anything is possible with you guys though!

Great....Listening music train ears educating them, listening music theory complete the experience.

Thank You all guys....keep on !!!

wow..this is great..
i love it so much.. thanks a lot pandoraa..

First off you guys are doing an excellent job with Pandora. I have discovered so much good much through you guys and thank you for it all. It about time someone got up and analyzed music. This new feature "Podcast" is another great idea. Being an amuture musician myself I find it facinating to discover how different bands do what they do, because many times the result might be the same but the process to get to it is whats interesting. Again thank you Pandora and please keep up the good work.

This was outstanding! This kind of unique aproach to a music site should attract alot of new listeners. I will surely be telling others about it. I have been singing in bands and praise teams at church for 26 years and am now the minister of music at my present church. I have learned alot through the years from being in music, but I have very little formal training. This type of instruction is a great way for me to learn and put more understanding to the things I have been doing but wasn't sure what I was doing. This will also help me to teach it to others on my praise team. Thank you so much for taking the time to do this. Greg C

Lovely podcast!...looking forward for the next one!!!

Kevin and crew,

Great podcast and a very good, concise lesson on vocal harmony, complete with examples and ties to songs in the genome.

I've been a professional broadcaster and touring sideman for over 30 years and love Pandora. This can only strengthen and expand the project. I look forward to more.

Thanks everyone for a job very well done!

Peace and have a Merry Christmas!

sd

loved the podcast - now i know what i'm listening to with a greater understanding, especially with respect to harmony.
would love a pause button since there were 5 interruptions at work while listening.
thanks-
robin
ps how about one relating to basics of r&b (including roots, like early r&b plus motown, etc)?

Wonderful, concise, informative....please keep it up. Pandora, you constantly amaze me with the quality of your site and keep me listening.

Great work guys! Thank you very much for your support!

Keep um comming!

I am a music producer myself and enjoyed this podcast very much. In fact, I found 9 minutes to be too short. Its educational for everybody, but I'm sure that many, like me, would love a 1 hour session (and even longer) to learn even more in every subject. I would listen and appreciate anything the pro's of Pandora would agree to share.

ThanX and keep up the good work!!!

Great idea!!! Definitely needs a Pause button.

Note: Although the Beatles' "I've Got a Feeling" is a perfect example of counterpoint, you've got the wrong excerpt of the song to illustrate it in your Examples.

Wicked! I'm creating a CD right now with my rock band, stuff like this is very interresting right now! I'll pass it on!

I've been an avid music listener since I secretly hid my transistor radio under my pillow in the early 60s, however, I am a novice when it comes to understanding the conceptual framework of the music. This topic was an excellent introduction with a very accessible level of content. I was so impressed by it that I forwarded the link to the choral director at the high school my daughters attended. No matter where his students are in their understanding of vocal harmony, I believe each could gain something from the discussion and examples. Can't wait for the next podcast! Congratulations on a job well done!

i loved this pod cast. i am constantly trying to find new ways to bring deeper insight into my knowledge of music and what a great way you have done that! i look foward to hearing more.

Nice .... Very nice :)

Thanks so much for this podcast. I will use it in my music club at the middleschool where I teach.

Pandora blew my mind when I first found it. It's so great that you don't need to really use anything else for listening to music. It's perfect.

And then came along this podcast and warmed my heart. This takes me back to when I was heavy into The Beach Boys and incorporating what I learned from them into my own music. Truly beautiful.

Pandora is the best.

Muy, pero muy bueno, lo disfrut頭ucho.
Great, realy great, I enjoyed it.

This is great! I've always wanted to learn about this stuff and this is the first time I understood it.

Thanks for the feedback, guys! I'm thrilled that you enjoyed the first podcast. Just to keep up, more of the ideas you've had for future episodes (thanks for those too):

- Instrumental solos (Mark)
- Common chord progressions (Darin Goulet)
- Tempo/rhythm, pulse/timeline, fitting words to rhythms (Tom)
- Instrumentation & the signifance of production (Worm)
- More vocals (Leriavaleria)
- Improvisation (Jay)
- Chord theory (Those Crazy Brauns)
- Explain 'swing' and how to get that groove (Ewan)
- Infinite guitar, dulcimer, ukelere (Zonkerboy)
- Gifted bands that never made it big (Randolph)
- Piano rhythms (Teton)
- Commonalities that lead to categorization (Dave Curtis)
- More theory (Lindsey K.)
- Basics of R&B (Robin)

Hopefully, Podcast #2 will debut next week. We will keep you posted. Happy listening!

Well done!

Thank you! Excellent mini-class in music appreciation!

Great idea. enjoyed it very much.
Keep stuff like this coming.

that's awesome!
u guys have made music so easy and so close to me. it's great to see clearer what's behind the track. keep it on!
thanks so much.

Totally fun and educaional... I fell soooo untalented!... but then I am way too old (70) to be taught new tricks!

It's awesome! I really loved it and I hope to find here more podcasts about the work in the studio - for exemple I'm interesting of arangement of the songs - is there a mechanism and so on. Bye and take care ;)

Hey, that was great! It's great because there are actual examples alongside the technical talk. Music theory's nice to pick up, but some ways it's taught are just . . . blugh.

That was great! Another great example of studio based doubling is The Postal Service - Such Great Heights. They also do that call and responce thing.

Pandora rocks, and I agree with GaryH for the pause feature - perhaps even a whole flash based mini-player (I assume you guys are going to produce more podcasts)

Thank you - brilliant! Much better than anything I learned at school.

Good job guys! Really...i didn't know this.
Am I supposed to?

Great idea for people who enjoys listening and performing music. Thank you very much, pandora keeps gettinng better and better. Peace and love

Back in March, 2006, I was 'turned on' to Pandora.com by Bill Machrone's PCMag article about this site.

I visited, read the FAQ's, perused the page about the Genome Project, and signed on willingly!

I have been VERY pleased and satisfied listening to and enjoying Pandora.com since then!

The couple of times I have had to contact the wonderful support crew at Pandora, I was greeted with a quick response and a 'good feeling' about the person who was writing. This tells me that these folks are dedicated, nice people who care about what they are producing, as well as the people who are 'listening in'!

This website stands in my mind as a beacon to other websites who are presenting themselves to the public - FOR THE PUBLIC!

Granted, they haven't found ALL of my 'quirky' and sometimes 'remote' musical wishes, but they let me know that they are working on it!

*singing quietly* "...who could ask for anything more?" - reference: "I Got Rhythm" - George and Ira Gershwin

The podcast is a GREAT insight into the world of making music, and being something of a musician all of my life, I enjoy learning and hearing what others do to 'get their sound'.

I look forward to future podcasts as well as 'the next song on my list'!

Love this first podcast. My only criticsm is that the samples were not always cued up to demonstrate the harmony. For example, the I've Got a Feeling exerpt just has Paul single melody � it doesn't have John singing the counterpoint. It makes me wonder if the other examples are also not demonstrting the technique.

But, still, I really enjoyed the podcast. Keep them coming.

Kim Dunn

Wow, great podcast! It was very informative, but not dry, and the music was good too. Maybe a little longer next time? Keep up the awesome work!

Great podcast--great idea!!
I liked the concise style you used to portray your points.
It was interesting to be exposed to a band I didn't know. I really liked there sound.
Applause to your project!!

This was very interesting for me as I am not an expert in how music is made - I only know I enjoy listening to it. I look forward to future podcasts and cannot wait to see what you come up with next.
By the way, I too think a pause button would be helpful.
Thank you, Pandora!

Excellent first podcast! I think the duration was perfect and I would suggest keeping it to 5 to 10 mintutes to optimize exposure. I was hoping to hear David Bowie Space Oddity as an example of the same voice overlaid in harmony... would have loved to hear your insights on that one! Great job and I look forward to more.
The Wine Snob - (alias "Steve")

Good dissection. Suggested future topics...

Signature Styles of Bass or Guitar or Keyboards
and Rhythms. Use of tempos and time signatures like Alicia Keys 12/8 song, "Fallin'", or the triplets feel in the Canadian rapper, Snow on "Informer"

Very nice. It reminds me of the Music Appreciation classes I took in high school but with a better concept and much more interest. I didn't fall asleep once. Please do more of these educational spots. Thanks.

Very good!!! too short!!! very didactic!!! very well done!!! we want more!!!
How about a podcast with different guitar sounds-effects...

This is awesome! I'm a karaoke junkie and on the site that I go to, they have a duet section. This helps explain vocal harmony to me...perhaps I might be able to harmonize in the future (I have difficulty doing it...lol).
Keep up the great work Pandora!

Wonderful first podcast. The subject matter is relevant and informative. My only suggestion would be to process the narrative differently than the vocalists. During the "additional voices" portion the delay and depth was changed for everyone, even while just speaking. Although the sound is brighter, it's less "personal" to hear someone speak through process.

Fantastic!

Ditto on the pause button.

Very interesting podcast, good work.
I would personally be interested in examples of different mixing and mastering techniques. I don't know if that would be considered too technical but I think it really matters to the feel and mood of a song.

After so many enthusiastic responses, you shouldn't need more - but, anyway - what a great idea! Like so many others, I am totally unaware of why what I hear affects me in the way it does, and I'd love to know. Talk doesn't do it - examples do, as the podcast shows.

Would it be possible, legally, to include brief extracts from well-known tracks? You refer to e.g. Beatles or Beach Boys harmonising... OK, I can go away and listen to them, but my short-term musical memory is sadly defective - I've already forgotten the *sound* of your (20 Minute Loop) illustrations... If you could say "As in.." and then play 5 seconds from a classic track, I would find it easier to make the connection.

Bonjour de France ! Thank you so much for this first podcast. I find the idea very interresting as, for the first time, you can listen to music you enjoy and now understand what makes you enjoying it.
Thank you so much all of you at Pandora for the music pleasure you spread on the web all over the world.

This is a good start, but I was hoping to get more insights into the different approaches to harmony by groups like the Four Seasons, Beach Boys, Beatles, Mamas and Papas, CSN, Eagles and I guess there are new groups, too.

Loved the Vocal Harmony podcast! It was so cool and natural, and it really warmed my afternoon. A little human touch was a good contrast to the sterile and neutered office environment, and a nice reminder of the beautiful things in life. Thank you.

I thought this was great. Even greater would have been to reach a bit further back in Harmonics and dig up The Andrews Sisters, who broke most of the rules of harmonic structure. Maxene, who sang the high-harmony, used to say that sometime LaVerne, on the lower notes, would have to scramble around to fill in when Maxene found herself on a really high note she couldn't reach! They didn't read music, and all three of the Sisters gave that as the reason their harmony was so unique. Barry Manalow had a hard time...and didn't entirely succeed...when he was arranging "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" for Bette Midler. Without the benefit of separate tracks to define the notes, he had to guess! Is it possible to highlight some of the early groups of harmony singers in another podcast?

Wow, what a great response to this. We have a kids music program here and will find these kinds of lessons a valuable adjunct to the curriculum Keep it up. I'd love to see a discussion of chord progressions and how entirely different songs can have the same chord progression.

2 Suggestions:

1) A discussion and examples of the different moods and emotional responses that are triggered by different chords, chord patterns, and modes of playing.

2) A discussion of how specific signature harmonies and sounds are created by interval choices, combinations of the harmonic techniques presented in this podcast, and the qualities of the voices that blend (or not).

It would be fun to explore what creates the unique harmonic sound we come to expect from Yes or Aerosmith or Matchbox 20 or The Gin Blossoms or Queen or The Eagles (very different vocally-oriented bands that are instantly recognizable by their harmonies)

You guys are amazing. Thank you for the podcast!! You guys ROCK!! Discovered Pandora by accident two days ago and LOVING IT!!...:D:D

This is great stuff, go thru the process of makeing and recording music.I've been a musician all my life,im 59 and still soak it up like a sponge. Thank You very much, record on..........

entertaining as well as informative!

Great contribution to the great music debate

Excellent! Thanks.

Really enjoyed your first podcast, hope theres plenty more to come

Something id like to hear is a series of podcasts that look at the development of various musical styles over the decades, such as rock, blues and roots and hip hop, as well as some of the bands that have made a significant impact on these genres.

Keep up the good work

Cheers, Kristof

I LOVE IT!

AND I CAN ALSO PRACTISE MY RUSTY ENGLISH...! :)

MUA MUA!

Gracias por Pandora... es un exelente pagina, estoy abriendo un mundo nuevo de musica conociendo mas y mas musica nueva.. Gracias gracias gracias!!

Fantastic podcast. Interesting for the casual listener as well as a music student. You should really do more of these - I think its a great value added feature of your website. Its good to hear as well as have it explained. Its not the same just reading about it!

Thanks & Looking forward to more.

Dean

You are on to something vitally important here --- teaching about our music in a completely organic way....I hope you can keep spreading the word about Pandora because you are doing such excellent work...Emeryville may be the center of the new creative universe --- Pixar, Will Wright, Pandora....a teeny patch of the planet where it is ALLLLLLL happening.....

I wanted to thank you for this podcast. Since I know very little about music from formal educational point of view, the info was very insightful and will add to my overall appreciation of music in general.

nice. Would video be hard to add? Even though I LOVE learning about music (never really got the chance), I'm still a visual person. Can't wait for more installments!! Can we learn about ALL the things you describe our favorite songs with? VERY cool site, by the way. I've turned all my friends on to it!

Brilliant!
I was so pleased with that concise little gem.
Exploring the genes: genres, instrumentation, production, song subject matter are all germain to the project. Which is what you want to begin with.
You guys are doin' it! Congrats on another innovation

interesting.
as said before, a pause button would be helpful.
thanks!

Nice one! Excellent podcast guys. Do more.

Great podcast! Looking forward to more in the series.

hmm.. dont know much about this but i think is good you do things like this to other people who know this things because is all about good music

Kim Dunn pointed out that the audio sample linked for "I've Got a Feeling" doesn't include the counterpoint. She is correct. On that song, Paul sings a verse, then John sings a variant on those verse chorus, and in the finale, Paul & John sing their disparate parts simultaneously.

So, think of the -end- of that song, not the middle bit included in that sample.

With the XTC song, most of the vocal material is purely contrapuntal in nature. That sample is comprised of the lengthy instrumental intro.

I'm starting to list some songs with the same chord progressions -- good idea there, KW Shoes. If any of you have any favorite examples of that, please list 'em.

Oh I like but my favourite artist is Nelly Furtado

Thx for the great podcast! I'm looking forward to new episodes! Really interesting!

Would it be possible to improve the player so that on can pause it or jump back and forth on the timeline?

Keep it up and thx again! Pandora rocks!

it's fantastic,I will come back again and again to listen to the course, please keep going...thanks,

What a great concept, the idea of making musicians and music lovers more aware of the music around them is just what the world needs. The product of this initiative would proberly be more creative musicians and more "proffesional" listeners :)

An idea for the streaming player would be a pause button and a seek bar.

Best regards:
Björn

Excellent, just excellent !!. Simple and precise, just what we all need. All in the right places: good voices, good speech. Did you consider the translation to other languages, for ex. Spanish? I can help you if you like to. I know a lot of people who would apreciate that a lot. Thank you again for the podcast.

The trick....trying to find your "uniqueness"
Pandora? Thanks for opening the box :)

outstanding. informative, entertaining, fun. Great job Kevin and I thoroughly enjoyed both the examples as performed by 20 minute loop and their own piece as well, which is lovely. do more of these!

Nice one,, thanks for the lessons, its nice to know more about music.

It's hella AWESOME to have such an informative broadcast! Now i know how to tell the different types of vocal harmony from each other. And i'll absolutely start to PRACTICE this skill when i listen to my Simon and Garfunkel station.
Pandora ROCKS!! Can't live without it!

Yes, I'd love a pause feature on the "Listen now", too.
Gread podcast! I want a new one!!! :)

Impressive. So good it just leaves the feeling it's too short. First time i hear about music theory, and that made me want to know more. Outstanding pod.

Wow, that was awesome. I didnt think music theory would be so cool. maybe something about guitar distortion? i dont understand that nonsense at all

Alright! These ideas are great. Some of the newer ones:

Studio work, and arranging (Dobromir)
Signature styles of bass (Whitman)
Mixing & mastering (Kristian Dupont)
Development of musical styles (Kristof)
Song subject matter (Mosthigh)

Just putting the finishing touches on Podcast #2. It should be up and available this Friday, the 15th.

The 20 Minute Loop website is pretty amusing this week, on which Greg and Kelly describe Pandora as "a creepy biotech experiment that attempts to reproduce music in test tubes and destroy the organic integrity of naturally produced music around the world."

Ha! Awesome.

Hey guys, just wanted to tell you all how much I enjoyed the podcast. Very well presented and demonstrated, and easily the most informative eight minutes of my whole music education ;).
Keep them coming - I'm really looking forward to the next one!
- Rob

Loved the podcast! It was extremely enlightening and so pleasantly done. Can't wait for the next one.

hey guys this was well done. I'm ready for another one

Why dose Pandora advertise the Pandora Podcast so often if this been the same for ever???

Soon, very soon, Robert et al. Friday, to be exact. The topic for the new one is "Drums and Drumming."

Guitar distortion, eh? Good idea, Threat Level Red -- maybe a whole episode on different types of guitar effects, actually.

Great idea guys! Will keep an eye for future podcasts! Don't want to miss any. And btw, it doesn't go that technical at all! It is very good explained! Great job!

SUPER >>>> PANDORA >>> AND NOW WITH PODCAST >> CONGRATULATION !
REGARDS AND MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM ELO IN DENMARK / EUROPE

Awesome podcast. As a bedroom music producer (mostly electronic) I am always on the look out for excellent explanations of specific concepts in music making--what people who are successful in making music are doing that define their sound. I'll sure be a loyal listener of this series.

Thanks!

Sorry but I don't understand? What is the purpose of Podcast?

You're using the RSS logo, but my browser does not understand the "pcast" protocol. Please provide an http link to your RSS feed.

Thanks I'll have some more please

Hey there, Pandora!

I just found your site a couple of weeks ago. (a friend tipped me)
Great concept, and it works good too!

I listended to the podcast; very informative and well made! Things i wondered about, but never dared to ask.

Is there a new podcast comin' up? Or maybe I just can't find 'em? I'm not too good with the web.

ciao!

what's the text symbol for standing ovation? :)<

now for the encore....

Very clear and easy to understand even for un little french froggy !
As I can say in French : "vous avez tous mes encouragements et on attend la suite avec impatience !!!".

Very well done. I will use it in an college audio production class I teach. More, more, more...!

Wow...Pandora is awesome! I am glad I was referred to it.
It would be nice to have a launchable application though instead of having to run it in a browser.
Anyway, thanks for introducing me to a lot of great music!

IT IS UP!!

I'm happy to announce that the new podcast is up. Thanks for your patience. In 2007, we'll move to a fortnightly schedule for these shows.

Podcast #2, "Drums and Drumming, Pt. 1," is available at http://blog.pandora.com/podcast .

Or, just click on the "Podcast" button at the top right corner of this page.

At this moment,
you are the best
and newer alternative
for the lovers of the music,
thanks.

Great POdcast and great idea. I am learning to play drums as well as vocals. I'm lost for words!

A singing drummer is a rare talent to have. I can only think of a select few: Sheila E, Don Henley, Phil Collins, Levon Helm...

You've checked out the newer podcast too, I hope? The drumming one?

Very well done. Easy to listen to and informative. 20 Minute Loop did a great job demonstrating too!

Pandora, first thim I'd like to say is: THANK YOU!

This is another great feature on your amazing webste. I'll be coming back for more, that's for sure!

Ooh and that vocal harmony podcast featured 20 Minute Loop.. they sound very much like the bands I like - thanks for helping me discover yet another band I otherwise wouldn't have discovered!

thanks for being a shining beacon for us alternative (and other) music lovers! you guys & gals rock x

You're quite welcome, Joske! Glad you liked it.

If you want to hear more 20 Minute Loop, check out their site -- 20minuteloop.com.

great podcast - thank you!

Another Great feature here!
i'm not good w/a computer but a Huge Fan of music, i've come in to find All that Rocks & i can't believe how amazingly entertaining Pandora is. i love coming in here & this podcast just adds to the Fun :o)

"Carry On" was Crosby, Stills, Nash AND Young, not just CSN.

Thanks for the podcasts. Very informative + clear. Please do one one on how to tell the difference between West African music + commercial pop, because Pandora could use a lesson.

Why do I get Celtic music on my Cuban Music Radio? Surely the Genome Project can tell the difference.
I love the concept of Pandora but the execution still needs work. Hang in there. I`m hoping you get it right.

Hi, Musicmaniac,

A podcast on West African music would be great, actually. My opinion is that the move from more traditional arrangements to commercial pop in that arena hinges on the production styles prevalent in Paris and elsewhere in Western Europe. Studios in Dakar, Abuja, Accra, and elsewhere started using more synthesizers as that aesthetic became more popular. There is a huge difference in production style when those synthetic sounds are added.

And Daniel -- you're right about "Carry On." I'd forgotten that it was all four, and mistakenly attributed it to the first (self-titled) album. Good eye.

I would like to Thank Pandora and Pandora's musical analyst
Kevin Seal for putting this all together. In addition to the musicians
Greg and Kelly for making that possible. It is great to receive some musical teachings from you guys. Love it! Well done! Happy Holidays and a New Year of Love and feast.

One artist I've made the basis of my personal Pandora analysis... Darren Hayes... is a fabulous exemplar of all these vocal harmony techniques! I'd definitely recommend checking out his work, which can be easily done right here at the Music Genome. Thanks for a hugely informative seminar series, I'll definitely be tuning in for more!

You're welcome, Eduardo, though I can't claim all the credit. Several folks here at Pandora worked on the podcasts -- Tim, Pandora's founder, put in a lot of work in particular.

Catriona, I'll check out Darren Hayes. I'm a sucker for great vocal harmonies.

Happy New Year!

This was the best thing I found this christmas - congratulations all at pandoras...
you going to do a new musicians tream - unsigned musicians that would fit in a radio station genre ?

I have just been made aware of your website and it's awesome!! I'll be spreading the word and oh yeah, this podcast rocks!

I like 20 minutes loop, and his Podcast, but why They aren't in ITunes, is a great band!!!

Thanks again, you guys. Interesting idea, Tim.

I found 20ML in the iTunes Music Store, Nito, but I had to search "Twenty Minute Loop."

Looks like "Pandora" is great project. One of my friends told me about it and is... very nice. I'll look on it.

Very fun to listen to =) I'm gonna listen to the drumming one too now =)

Excellent, Vincent. Let us know what you think.

thanks for that, nice and simple and reassuring. I know I'm definately on the right track...

These podcasts are very useful, I think.

It's good to learn the different terms about vocal harmony.

This site gets better and better as time passes.

Good job, guys. Keep on your musical teaching mission.

Thank you both. I'm excited for you guys to hear the new Guitar Effects podcast, which goes live on Wednesday.

Congratulations on a wonderful podcast!
The examples using the same tune were great to pinpoint the differences, without changing anything else! Great, great job!
I look forward, in your future podcast episodes, for you to exemplify/explain all the other "hundreds of attributes".

More attributes on their way, Rick! It'll take us a while to get through all of the hundreds, but we're pedaling as fast as we can. Thanks for listening, and I hope these add some different angles and perspectives to your Pandora station-building.

Guides to electronic music production coming soon to www.plexusrecords.com

A fellow Pandora User.

Will be helpful to anyone considering setting up a home studio.

Cheers, Tyler.

I am enjoying myself SOOOO,, much with your sys,,it is a treasure. Keep up the good work!!

Thanks, Dana! Glad you're enjoying it.

Wow! This is so great! I've been using pandora for quite sometime now and I enjoy it soooo much. This project is such an eye-opener and I learned a lot here at Podcast.

I must say, your site is the best and the amount of learning I have got in music from this site is immeasurable. The podcast and the learning in local harmony is like the icing on the cake. I cannot imagine what else to expect.
Thanks so so much Pandora!

Cheers, Josie. Plenty more icing on its way.

This is awesome. Thanks for everything. I'll definetely be waiting for the next lesson.

Pandora seems to be a great Projekt!

That�s great!

There's a new one going up later today, actually (1/24), also about vocals. This time, it's about recording techniques, working with the mic while singing, and those sorts of things. I hope you guys like it.

Terrific! This is a great introduction to some of the basic techniques of harmonizing. I'd like to add a statement, and a request. My opinion is, when it comes to counterpoint, nobody I can think of tops the Beach Boys. Just listen - really listen - to "I Get Around", "Help Me Rhonda", "Fun, Fun, Fun", and try to pick out all of the different things that are going on there, especially during the fade-out endings. Back in the 60's, we all took the incredible Brian Wilson for granted. What fools we were! And, now that we've been introduced to harmony techniques, could we please have another podcast that goes more into the harmonics, themselves. You could start with an example of 3-part harmony, like the Andrews Sisters (I know someone mentioned them), then on to simple 4-part harmony, like the Doo-Wop groups used to do back when, then complex 4-part harmony like the Modernaires or Manhattan Transfer, and then finish up with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. I think giving us the chance to listen to harmonic progression, from simple to complex, would really give us a rush, and show what human beings are capable of...

I love what youve done here, but i wish there was a written explanation of the definitions as well as an audio explanation.
I am a huge fan of everything here though.
i love you guys. Pandora is a genius idea.
Keep up the great work and thank you for everything.
chris

The Master at recording Background Vocals is TODD RUNDGREN. Give him a Listen to see/hear how it's done!

Bob

http://bobcerm.podomatic.com

Agreed that Rundgren is an expert at the background vocals, on his own albums as well as on records he has produced -- XTC's Skylarking has a-MAZ-ing backing vocals all over it, and that's a Rundgren production.

Chris, we are considering creating a full glossary, but I'm thinking that it would cover the terms of -all- episodes. So terms could potentially link to a full alphabetized index of musical definitions... anyhow, hopefully that will happen. Thanks for listening.

hey Kevin et.al from Pandora,

I just started exploring and found these podcasts. This one about vocal harmony was amazingly well presented for the kind of complexity actually involved in creating good vocal harmony.

Kudos to you and the team from 20 minute loop.

eager to listen to more such.
A big pandora fan.
chax.

Cheers, Chax. It was definitely a challenge to present complex concepts such as counterpoint & call/response in 8 minutes; thanks for appreciating that. Thanks for listening.

wow, thats an excellent podcast. im a vocalist and i really enjoyed it! :)
i really like that band "20 minute loop" too, the woman has a very nice smooth distinctive voice.
cheers! keep up the good work!

Thanks, Conor. Kelly's voice is fantastic, I agree. She sings a song on the new Rondo Brothers album, too.

I really liked it harmony is such an interesting subject

i enjoyed it a lot!!good work, very interesting

Hello! It is interestig site. Keep working!

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Thanks!

I enjoyed it!

As a specific comment, if you mention doubling, how can you avoid mentioning The Beatles and Paul McCartney in particular who were as far as I know one of the first to use this, in at the latest 1964, and used it distinctively on almost every track they did thereafter?

But more important, there's also a huge specific technique in vocal harmony that you're missing and that's, for want of a better word, instrumental.

This is quite different from counterpoint, where two or more separate voices develop themes and counter-themes using various techniques developed since before Bach's time.

In instrumental singing, all the vocalists are playing dramatically different roles akin to the different roles of instruments in an ensemble, in contrast to counterpoint where the separate voices have fairly similar roles.

Such music appears for example in Africa, India, and Indonesia, in the West as doo-wap and even beat boxing (although that isn't really harmony :-D).

Another characteristic of this instrumental singing is a greater emphasis on timbre. Timbre means the character of the sound, that thing that makes a bassoon sound dramatically different to a flute playing at the same pitch.

If you listen to the vocal samples presented in this lesson, you'll hear a completely open and clear timbre. This is very appealing in many ways but you can also make passages more interesting by choosing a specific voice timbre for each part -- ideas include nasal, chest, lips closed or mouth wide open, buzzing and I'm sure you can come up with more (but avoid breathy as it's bad for your voice) -- particularly if you're looking for a harmony part that's a little lower in the mix.

Examples include Wimoway or any doo-wap, Indonesian kecak, Zap Mama's first two albums, Indian talking drum, and to some extent singers with character voices like Kate Bush or Mike Patton.

Timbre and vocal tone are huge areas to explore, and there's an upcoming podcast called "Vocalizing: Tone, Range, and Vibrato" that will begin to scratch the surface of those topics.

Nasality vs. open tone, chest vs. head voices, falsetto vs. not. Tone and timbre are different beasts from part-writing and arrangement, which were our focuses here.

And I agree, Tom, that the Beatles used doubling extensively. Absolutely. Almost any Lennon-sung song after '64 or '65 features multiple takes played simultaneously, creating that natural doubling effect. Actually, every vocal-harmony approach that we discussed in this episode can be found in many Beatles songs. They were true masters of vocal arranging.

Have you checked out the other episode we produced called "Recording Vocals"? That one begins to touch on tone and on the 'instrumental' approach to vocalizing that you're talking about. More to come, though, and many more subjects to cover. Thanks for the comment.

are there cds or other materials available to specifically break down and to practice the various techniques and also the particular harmonies favored by the beatles-i.e.;in song x the background "oohs" are unison moving into 3rd above melody line...here's a track to practice singing a part like that...?

Hmmm... not that I know of. I have a "Playing Bass With Beatles Songs" book & CD that isolates and teaches McCartney's bass lines, but I've never seen anything like that for their vocal harmonies.

Given the wealth of published scores available for Beatles recordings, it seems like something their publishers could provide. Have you seen "The Beatles - Complete Scores"? It's 1100 pages. Not even exaggerating:
http://www.amazon.com/Beatles-Complete-Scores/dp/0793518326

This is very interesting...

good stuff keep it up

luogo interessante, soddisfare interessante, buon!

Hey, make more of that! :-)

The girl really has a sympathetic laugh ;-)

Very impressed with your podcasts! Can't wait to hear more, I learned alot and I have been studying music on my own for years. It outlined a great deal of, "how to", so that I can get recording and keep in mind all of the options to give it that special sound I'm looking for. Fantastic! Looking forward to hearing more as they come!

Great podcast, thanks!

Though I must say that the "ABBA" sample you have under Unison is a cover group called "A-teens" which originally was called ABBA-teens but was not allowed to be called that by the real ABBA.

Eek! A typographical error, that was. I just corrected it. Thanks, Tomas.

Luogo molto buon:) Buona fortuna!

E evidente che il luogo e stato fatto dalla persona che realmente conosce il mestiere!

I think these blog is really useful for new comers and Excellent resource list.

I think these blog is really useful for new comers and Excellent resource list.
It�s a very interesting Blog and simple answer of many questions.
Keep up the good work!
Thanks it helps me a lot�

Thanks! Cool that you enjoy the examples, too.

luogo interessante, soddisfare interessante, buon!

Lo trovo piuttosto impressionante. Lavoro grande fatto..)

Great for this i search many hours bu now i found it here.

Thanks for help

Nice service. Can I also submit songs of newcomers? I have a friend who plays in a band, they are still looking for ways to publish their music...

Stupore! ho una sensibilit� molto buona circa il vostro luogo!!!!

Brad -- absolutely. Send any independent releases to us here:

Pandora Media
att: Independent Submissions
360 22nd St., Fourth Floor
Oakland CA 94612

Thanks,
Kevin

I think these blog is really useful for new comers and Excellent resource list.

Thanks -- glad you like the resource list.

Excellent article it�s realy helpful, keep up the good work!
Thank you.

Again, I urge people to go buy some 20 Minute Loop records -- all three are wonderful. Their site is www.20minuteloop.com

Great Podcast. WoW!!!!

wow her voice is so sexy!!

very nice :)

Supreme concept of a personalized web portal.

Great and excellent article t�s realy helpful. Thanks again.

nice voice :)

Thanks for listening, everybody.

I searched a long time for such an great article. Thank you

Hey this is a very nice concept of a Personal Page!

great ideas on a great website! Please go on with your stuff - it?s great learning about instruments and so on......

very nice podcaat.

Really great podcast with great instructions about the different ways of harmonizing vocal-parts !

As a reasonably experienced musician arranger and composer I know you can never learn too much. These podcasts are awesome. The format and content is inspiring.

Thanks, guys! Tell your friends and neighbors... hee hee. Many more episodes to come.

Guides to electronic music production coming soon to www.plexusrecords.com

A fellow Pandora User.

Will be helpful to anyone considering setting up a home studio.

Cheers, Tyler.

very nice!

Thanx for this very useful and informative article, nice work!

great podcaststuff, i hope we will see more!

Fantastic article! Very useful informations. I really love it, can I recommend it to my friends?

good

Absolutely, you can recommend it to your friends, Stron. And many more episodes are on the way.

salut

Great! Looking forward to the upcoming titles!!

Finally a way to hear the kind of music that you want to hear when you want to. I am tring to find the words to describe how pandora helps me on a daily basis. Just to name a few benifits I have the privilage to pick the songs I want to here, and its free, sometime I want to here a verity other times I am just in a mode for a specific kind of music. with pandora I have that privilage.As long as you stay the way you are and dont change these good things You will have me for life.

really great and helpfull podcast ! I like that medium.... :-)

pandora... entertaining AND educational

great idea, can you make these easier to subscribe to?

Great to hear! Fer, we would love to make these easier to subscribe to... what would make it easier? We have two links from the main page -- one to the iTunes Music Store and another to the plain feed for other pod-reading programs. Did neither of those work for you?

Excellent article it�s realy helpful, keep up the good work!
Thank you.

I enjoyed browsing through the site. Keep up! Good work. Greetings

Great, looking forward.

Great and excellent article t�s realy helpful. Thanks again.
Wow. Very impressive.

Thanks for listening, guys! Any questions about the topic?

Great and excellent article t�s realy helpful. Thanks again.

Great links

Thanks for very interesting article. btw. I really enjoyed reading all of your posts. It�s interesting to read ideas, and observations from someone else�s point of view� makes you think more. So please keep up the great work. Greetings

I think these blog is really useful for new comers and Excellent resource list.
It�s a very interesting Blog and simple answer of many questions.
Keep up the good work!
Thanks it helps me a lot�

Hello, I�m a regular visitor to your site so i finally decided
its time to sign your blog, http://www.emule.waw.pl so here i sign !

Thanks... I guess...

greetings from Germany kaffee

L'information interessante que vous avez! I'am allant revenir bientot.

Thanks for very interesting article. btw. I really enjoyed reading all of your posts. It�s interesting to read ideas, and observations from someone else�s point of view� makes you think more. So please keep up the great work. Greetings

Very impressed with your podcasts! Can't wait to hear more, I learned alot and I have been studying music on my own for years. It outlined a great deal of, "how to", so that I can get recording and keep in mind all of the options to give it that special sound I'm looking for. Fantastic! Looking forward to hearing more as they come!

Thanks, Aristo!

We'll keep producing these as long as y'all keep enjoying them. We appreciate the encouragement.

Fantastic article covering some points I really needed some good usability info for.

pagine piuttosto informative, piacevoli =)

hi.you hardly ever find what you are looking for on the web so thanks in that respect but i don't remember hearing any counterpoint in 'I've got a feeling'- beetles.can you explain this for me one more time? many thanks

In "I've Got A Feeling" --

Paul sings "I've got a feeling, a feeling deep inside, oh yeah."

Then John sings "Everybody had a good year, everybody had a hard time," etc.

Two separate melodies, distinct from one another.

In the end of the song, these melodies occur at the same time, on top of one another. This is counterpoint. Does that make sense?

Wow, thanks for informations. Great

Pandora. That�s the right name!

this counterpoint is not in the actual sample?yes it makes a lot of sense now thanks again.

Wow, great track. i like it.. well done

I really appreciate your work! Music means a lot in my life and I'm very happy to get to know about some new things concerning my passion! big thanx:)

It's very good article. Great site with very good look and perfect information... Thanks

It's very good article. Great site with very good look and perfect information... Thanks

Can i translate this and insert on my site in Poland? Thanks

Sure! Translate away. This information is free for everybody.

Nice! podcast subscribed to!

Beautiful. Subscriptions make us happy. Gracias, Gratis.

Wow, thanks for informations. Great

Thanx for this very informative article, good work!

Wow, very nice! Keep up the good work!

It�s very good article. Great site with very good look and perfect information.

Excellent mini-class in music appreciation!

Beautiful,good things!

It�s very good article.

It�s very good article. Great site with very good look and perfect information. I like it too

Excellent Podcast, excellent. Thanks for that! Harmony is something usually very misunderstood, and it's good to also have some instrumental knowledge � a lot of vocalists don't realise how musical theory can help them vocalise and harmonise correctly.
Very enjoyable Podcase, excellently done.

Good work! I like these musics!

I am interested in the topics discussed but have been feeling a little intimidated by the thought of the work

Thanks for sharing!

Great site with very good look and perfect information.

Thanks for very interesting article. btw. I really enjoyed reading all of your posts. It�s interesting to read ideas, and observations from someone else�s point of view� makes you think more. So please keep up the great work. Greetings.

I've always enjoyed Beach Boys' harmonies. Now I know what it was I was enjoying.
Super stuff.

thank you :)

I have always loved vocal harmony, but I had never heard of harmony being analyzed. I thoroughly enjoyed the podcast. WELL DONE !

Oooh that's really an great article!

Thanks for very interesting article. btw. I really enjoyed reading all of your posts. It�s interesting to read ideas, and observations from someone else�s point of view� makes you think more.

This article is very interesting and written by some clever guy.:) Thank you!

Does pandora also allow scrobbling like las/t*f/m does?
Sadly, pandora is currently available for the usa only.

thank you its great

This was very interesting for me as I am not an expert in how music is made - I only know I enjoy listening to it. I look forward to future podcasts and cannot wait to see what you come up with next.
By the way, I too think a pause button would be helpful.
Thank you, Pandora!

Owwwwwwwwwwwwwwwful podcast.
Thanks much :)

Really a sexy voice!

HI there

sorry that it seems that I am the only one beneeth the SPAM entrys commenting a negative post concerning the vid!
I think it is not worth to have a look at the video. It is too boring!
But I think there will be much visitors liking that entry! So keep on going!

Loved the podcast! It was extremely enlightening and so pleasantly done. Can't wait for the next one.

Very interesting podcast, good work.
I would personally be interested in examples of different mixing and mastering techniques. I don't know if that would be considered too technical but I think it really matters to the feel and mood of a song.

Thanks for the Podcast, was very interesting and i say that as an very untalented guy :D Keep up the good work!

Great podcast. Thanks.

Thanks for the Podcast, was very interesting and i say that as an very untalented guy :D Keep up the good work!

nice page, keep it on

regards paul

thx for the great stuff! saved it. set a backlink to this article

Thanks for very interesting article. btw. I really enjoyed reading all of your posts. It�s interesting to read ideas, and observations from someone else�s point of view� makes you think more. So please keep up the great work. Greetings.

I am a huge fan of everything here though.
i love you guys. Pandora is a genius idea.
Keep up the great work and thank you for everything.
chris

What a nice song :)

This podcast ist really good. Thank you for mention it !

Great! Really cool and very nice podcast! I will recomande You!

This was a great podcast i've been singing for years and never really thought about how many different types of harmony there are!

Cool, Klingeltone. Yeah, the different harmony varieties are not something that necessarily spring to mind, even if you're using them all the time. Thanks for listening.

Hey, nice post - well done :)
Greetz

Thanks so very much for taking your time to create this very useful and informative site. I have learned a lot from your site. Thanks!!

Thanks for the lesson :-)

Pandora is a great idea!
Thank you for song.
Anna

Very nice song. Thank ou. I hear it the whole day.

Alex

Good good. Glad to hear it.

Hey, very nice song. I want more! Big Thanks 4 this!

I like the podcast still fine musik.
My favorite Musik if i was drinking cocktails.

Pandora is a great idea!

Very nice song. Thank ou. I hear it the whole day.

I think that a podcast that is based on musical elements is a great idea, particularly from a recognized authority on music and it's elements. Being a music therapy major at ASU, it is a refreshing new experience to have a relevant podcast out there.

During my holidays i found this podcast. I like it, any updates?

A singing drummer is a rare talent to have. I can only think of a select few: Sheila E, Don Henley, Phil Collins, Levon Helm.

Great site, good look, perfect information, congratulations.

We're getting bombed with comment-spam... I'm going to have to freeze this comments page for a while, sorry y'all.

Thanks for listening, and I hope you enjoy the many other episodes:
http://www.pandora.com/show