brettworks

thinking through music

April 21, 2020

Brett’s Sound Picks: Ital Tek’s “Leaving The Grid” (2020)

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Brett’s Sound Picks, Uncategorized
April 20, 2020

Soundscapes: Sheep Music

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soundscapes, Uncategorized
April 17, 2020

Sketch

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sketch, Uncategorized
April 16, 2020

Curating The Week: Swimming, Walking, And Limited Options

• An essay about swimming. “Cognitive scientists have shown that water sounds—the rhythmic hum of the ocean, the rush of a waterfall—are calming to the human brain. We experience a drop in heart rate and blood pressure and an increase in alpha-wave activity—those brain wavelengths associated with relaxation and boosted serotonin—as well as creative thinking.”… Continue reading

Creativity, Curating The Week, Uncategorized
April 15, 2020

Art About Music: Jean Dubuffe’s “Jazz Band (Dirty Style Blues)” (1944)

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art about music, Uncategorized
April 14, 2020

Brett’s Sound Picks: Gigi Masin’s “If” (2020)

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ambient music, Brett’s Sound Picks, drone, Uncategorized
April 13, 2020

(Untitled)

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(parenthetical posts), improvisation, Uncategorized
April 10, 2020

A Flag Blowing Three Ways

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piano music, Uncategorized
April 9, 2020

Resonant Thoughts: Daniel Lanois On Sampling (2016)

“I developed this system of taking samples of already existing components and extracting them from—putting them out of sync with the track and then doctoring them externally through other boxes, maybe changing them to slow them down, and if I hit on something special then I go back in and find a spot for that… Continue reading

sampling, Uncategorized
April 8, 2020

Lucas van Leyden’s “The Musicians” (1524)

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art about music

Thomas Brett is a musician and writer who holds a PhD in ethnomusicology from New York University. He is the author of Principles of Electronic Music Production and The Creative Electronic Music Producer, a book described by Sound On Sound magazine as “a deep philosophical analysis of the various creative inspirations, ideas and processes involved in producing electronic music.” His essays have appeared in the journals Popular Music and Popular Music and Society, as well as edited collections by Routledge, Oxford, and Cambridge University presses. Thomas has played percussion on Broadway since 1997 and writes about music at brettworks.com.