Drum Feels (With Toms and Kick)
May 07, 2008
When it comes to arranging a song, the drum parts selected for verses, choruses and bridges are crucial. Session drummer and Pandora music analyst Jeff Anthony shows us ways that he uses his toms and kick drum to create these variations. Among the styles he gets into: a kick-heavy sixteenth note part; a spacious, rolling pattern meant to accompany a guitar drone; a syncopated and anticipated style suitable for a lively R&B track in the vein of Earth Wind & Fire; a track that accelerates to push the chorus. (10 mins.)Continue reading "Drum Feels (With Toms and Kick)"
Metric Modulation
April 23, 2008
Don't let the technical name throw you off -- metric modulation is something you will be able to hear very clearly. Pandora dance music captain Chris Horgan from Beatropolis comes by to show how tempos (tempi) can change on a dime, with the use of subdivided beats. Speeding up and slowing down are not the only ways to jump from BPM to BPM, as you will soon hear. (10 mins.)Continue reading "Metric Modulation"
Building A Song From The Ground Up
April 08, 2008
It's been said that writing about music is like dancing about architecture. If that is true, then let's look at the recording studio as if it's an architect's drafting table. Pandora music analyst Scott Pinkmountain pulls apart a song brick by brick, and we hear the thought processes that informed his decisions. From the drummer's British-style swing to the method they used to alter the piano's tone with a tissue box, we hear how "You Gave Me This" was constructed, layer by layer. (10 mins.)Continue reading "Building A Song From The Ground Up"
Strings
March 31, 2008
Johnny, rosin up your bow. Guest host Samantha Grant welcomes Pandora music analysts Alan L. Lin and Yair Evnine. Alan, a violinist, and Yair, a cellist, give us a primer on string theory as it relates to legato and staccato, arco and pizzicato, and other aspects of bowing and plucking in both the classical and pop (singer-songwriter) realms. (9 mins.)
In addition to their work as performing musicians, Alan and Yair have both spent a lot of time analyzing music for the Music Genome Project. You can hear songs that both of them have analyzed on your Pandora stations.
Singing
Recording Vocals with Ariah FireflyMixing Vocals with Ariah Firefly
The Basics of Vocal Harmony with Greg Giles and Kelly Atkins from 20 Minute Loop
Singing Intervals with Melody Parker
Song Lyrics with Michael Zapruder
Word Choice In Lyrics with Michael Zapruder
Rhythm
Drums and Drumming, Part I with Jeff AnthonyDrums and Drumming, Part II with Jeff Anthony
Percussion Without Borders with Sameer Gupta
Hip Hop Rhyme Schemes with Darian Gray
Meters and Time Signatures with Adam Blum
Metric Modulation with Chris Horgan
Drum Feels (With Toms and Kick) with Jeff Anthony
Styles
Elements of Salsa with Marina Garza and Orquesta D'SoulReggae, Ska, Rocksteady and Dub with Vic Wong, Ray Jacildo, and the Soul Captives
Electronic Dance Music, Part I with Chris Horgan, Christian Runge, and Beatropolis
Electronic Dance Music, Part II with Chris Horgan and Beatropolis
Holiday Music with Todd Haemmerle
Types of Metal
with Kurt Kotheimer, Ava Mendoza and Weasel Walter (soon)
Composition
Major & Minor with Scott PinkmountainPedal Point with Michelle Alexander
Three Chords with Russell Johnson
Quiet & Loud with Matt Cannon
The Blues Scale with Bob Coons
Building A Song From The Ground Up with Scott Pinkmountain
Instruments
Electric Guitar Effects with Patrick GreeneUpright Bass with Seth Ford-Young
The Guitar Riff with Will Redmond
Synthesis with Steve Hogan
The Brass Family with Gene V. Baker
Strings with Alan L. Lin and Yair Evnine
