Themes and Variation

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! The latest episode of T&V is all about "Songs That Aren't for the Faint of Heart." This theme almost immediately became one of our favorites, but what does it mean to you? And what would you add to a community playlist that isn't for the faint of heart? Maybe your pick would be the sort of angsty number that comes with a parental warning....

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! Imagine for a moment that you're on your own, but in a crowd. Maybe you're seated on a bus alongside others who are also making the journey from work to home. Perhaps you're walking down a busy street, and you find an unexpected moment of tranquility as you bend down to tie the laces of a well-worn shoe. Then again, you could be one in an audi...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! Whether facing the aftermath of a flash in the pan fling or the desolation that follows the the ending of a lifetime's truest love, there are certain songs worth turning to when in need of emotional catharsis. While it won't necessarily heal all wounds, music can reinvigorate a sense of hopeful determination and remind us that we're not alone....

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! A clever way to credit one of the most joyful giants of jazz, a legendary hip-hop alias inspired by  The Art of War, and a mind-bending backstory to go with a country star's pseudonym — these are some of the things covered by the podcast panel in the latest episode of  Themes and Variation . For this one, Mahea and Carter sat do...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! The oxymoronic theme "Songs From the Imminent Past" was first suggested as a bit of a joke, but the more we thought about it, the more we succumbed to it, and well, here we are! For our podcast's first episode of 2022, we dove into a set of songs that has us thinking hard about the both the recent past and not-so-distant future. To kick the ye...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! In 2021, our podcast released 24 episodes, each of which was centered around a musical theme. Some of the themes were pretty clear cut (like "Songs That Used Found Sounds" or "Dilla Songs"), while others were more abstract (like "Whimsical Songs" or "Mysterious Songs"), but they were all up for interpretation. We heard insights and ideas from...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! The term "one-hit wonder" evokes a certain notion of failure. It implies that the artists that get slapped with that label could never follow up the song that made them global sensations. The truth is, getting even just a single hit is a monumental achievement, and these hits were so big that they took on a life of their own. For the latest ep...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! Whether you consider yourself a morning person or not, the first thing you listen to can sometimes set the tone for the rest of your day. So what kind of song do you prefer to wake up to — something with a strong backbeat to shake you from your slumber or a tune with a gentle build to ease the way between dreams and reality? For the latest epi...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! The concept of "groove" can be hard to pin down. That single word alludes to the rhythmic character of a composition, the feeling with which performers play their parts, and a certain ineffable something that catches the ear and sinks right into a listener's core. Creating something that sits right in the pocket requires both swagger and compr...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! While we may not believe anyone should truly be ashamed of their taste in music, most of us have been in a situation where we felt the need to explain why a particular song was part of our music collection. Call it shame or guilty pleasure, but there are tracks we quietly enjoy, while convincing ourselves they're outliers that say nothing abou...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! As an art form, jazz can be passionate or mesmerizing, spontaneous or calculated, inviting or intimidating. It's a unique genre of music, in that it is somehow perceived to be both inclusive and exclusive. For some, it is little more than the soundtrack of their holiday shopping trips, but for others, it's something powerful that relentlessly...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! There are certain songs we recognize almost instantly. Sometimes it's because of a particular lick in the intro. Then again, it could be the use of an incredibly unique sound or instrument. And, of course, there are some songs that quickly ring a bell because of our personal connections to them. For the most recent episode of our podcast, Mahe...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! Some of the best moments in music are the ones that defy expectations, breaking from conventional "rules" in pursuit of something unique or unpredictable. These are often the instances that catch our ears, leaving us wondering what just happened and how those artists got away with something you just don't do . That irregular something can be a...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! There are so many ways to "study music." You can do it by sitting down to practice your instrument, enrolling in a course online or in-person, or even breaking down a piece that you love in the context of a podcast you just so happen to host. For our first-ever livestreamed taping, Mahea and Carter sat down with author, educator, and doctoral...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! Most music can heighten moods and toy with feelings, but what does it take for a song to truly send a listener on an emotional journey? Does it have to do with the instrumentation? What about the form, or the harmony? Does said journey need to feel like a rollercoaster of ups and downs, or can it be more subtle than that? To answer these quest...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! So what does it mean to do something truly amazing with a snippet of sound you've pulled from an existing song? And why have certain songs been sampled so many times? We dig into these questions and more in the latest episode of Themes and Variation , "Sample Fodder Songs." For the 25th episode of the show, Carter sat down with one of the grea...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! Have you ever found yourself singing along to a hit song at the top of your lungs, thinking "that can't be the line, can it?" It's a pretty common experience — one that typically ends with a shrug of the shoulders as you take in a deep breath in preparation for the next verse. If the melody's good and the groove is solid, somewhere between our...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! What comes to mind when you hear the words "video game music?" Is it a vibrant series of retro-sounding bloops and bleeps a la our favorite princess-saving plumber, or a rich, orchestral landscape that might accompany an assassin exploring an open world? Making music for video games presents an interesting challenge. The composer must create s...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! There are certain songs that seem perfectly suited for stormy skies and drizzly days. In some cases, this can be attributed to sentimental lyrics, while in others, it's more about an incessant rhythmic figure or the presence of an instrument with a particularly delicate sound. Whatever the reason, it's as though you simply have to sit back and...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! In celebration of our new course, The Music of Boy Bands , we dedicated an entire episode of the podcast to some of music history’s favorite heartthrobs. After all, despite the inarguable commercial success of groups like *NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys, boy band music has rarely been given the academic and analytical attention we feel it deser...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! The one where Carter shares some exciting news... Check out all of our courses including Modern Pop Vocal Production here . Subscribe to all of our courses here and use the discount code PODCAST to take 20% off! And check out our free Themes and Variation companion course for writing prompts and additional resources. Have questions or comments...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! It's our 20th episode! And to celebrate, we're taking a deep dive into three very fun, very playful, Whimsical Songs . Joining Carter on this episode filled with whimsy are his frequent podcast co-pilot Mahea Lee, and Soundfly Founder/CEO, Ian Temple. The three of them discuss the seriousness of Hall and Oates , the DIY mastery of the band Vul...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! This week’s of Themes and Variation is full of intrigue, excitement, and unanswered questions. What else would you expect from a theme like "Mysterious Songs?" For this one, Carter was joined by his co-producer and frequent co-host, Mahea Lee (composer, arranger, music educator) and one of our favorite people on the face of the planet, the ini...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! Music can affect us in so many interesting ways. It can toy with our perception of time when someone on the other end of a phone line puts us on hold. It can motivate us to keep up the pace and push through the last leg of an early morning run. It can even say everything we've been failing to articulate, providing something that makes sense in...

Follow us on Twitter for news about the show and more! J Dilla (aka James Dewitt Yancey) was, without a doubt, one of the most creative and influential musicians of his or really, any era of music. He was a true producer, possessing not only the technical skills required to make incredible music, but also the taste and artistry needed to create the kind of work that will forever be imitated, but n...