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brettworks

thinking through music


  • November 4, 2022

    Curating The Week: Mind Wandering, Music Streaming, West African Drumming

    • An article about how a wandering mind is an unhappy mind. “The ability to think about what is not happening is a cognitive achievement that comes at an emotional cost.” • An article about music streaming platforms. “The platforms right now are flooded by a tidal wave of content as millions of creators getting Continue reading

    Curating The Week
  • November 3, 2022

    Brett’s Sound Picks: Burial’s “Streetlands” (2022)

    Playlist 2022 Continue reading

    Brett’s Sound Picks
  • November 2, 2022

    Art About Music: Georges Ribemont-Dessaignes’ “Grand Musicien” (1920)

    Continue reading

    art about music, Uncategorized
  • November 1, 2022

    Lamentation

    Continue reading

    Uncategorized
  • October 31, 2022

    How Might I Develop This?

    “I should have spent less time worrying and more time building. If you’re not sure what to do, make something.” – Paul Graham From the get-go of working on a new track the most pressing question a producer needs to answer through action is, How might I develop this? Your answer depends on what you’ve Continue reading

    Uncategorized
  • October 28, 2022

    Resonant Thoughts: Sarah Davachi On Listening

    “I always think of myself as being on this producer’s end of listening: the way that a producer might listen to a recording, or might listen to an instrument, or a microphone or whatever. So usually the way I would want people to think about sound is trying to listen to these details. And listening Continue reading

    Resonant Thoughts
  • October 27, 2022

    Brett’s Sound Picks: Hainbach’s “Wattebausch” (2022)

    2022 playlist Continue reading

    Brett’s Sound Picks
  • October 26, 2022

    Art About Music: Jean Dufy’s “Trio De Clowns Musiciens” (1929)

    Continue reading

    art about music
  • October 25, 2022

    Pulsations

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    Uncategorized
  • October 24, 2022

    Broad Strokes First, Then Smaller Details

    While there are no foolproof ways to get a piece of music going, a useful strategy is to think in terms of broad strokes first, then smaller details. This is the musical equivalent of the writer who gets an initial rough draft down, then refines it later. It reminds me of something I heard a graduate Continue reading

    workflow
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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.

Recent Posts

  • Database: Dave Stewart On Stereo Picture, Frequency Differences, And Demos
  • Brett’s Sound Picks: Musicentrydelete’s “Depth” (2025)
  • When Less Leads To More
  • Omni 98 bpm
  • Drumming Diaries: Grip

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