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What makes a Beatles chord progression work? Why does that Stevie Wonder song sound the way it does? Music theorist and composer Dr. Guy Shkolnik joins the pod to breaks down all that good stuff and more: harmony, counterpoint, composition across all genres (even how Japanese music is different!!).
With a PhD in music theory and a social media following built from deep-dive breakdowns (and years of university teaching under his belt including international Berklee College of Music associated harmony, counterpoint, and ear training classes), Guy knows how to make it “click.” Let’s dive deep in, follow the white rabbit, and find out why music works. (And why we love it!)
For 30% off your first year of DistroKid to share your music with the world click DistroKid.com/vip/lovemusicmore
Subscribe to this pod's blog on Substack to receive deeper dives on the regular 🏊♂️
Tune into my music and surf the different-yet-connected platforms at ScoobertDoobert.pizza 🍕
Pick up my new LP "I" on vinyl in its full spinning colorfulness while they last 🎨
Connect with Guy on his:
✏️ IG ✏️ YouTube ✏️ Website
Play with the words. The gravity of harmony, The fundamentals. Gives direction. The environment is inviting. Those building blocks. Both sides of the mirror. Approachable. In tandem. That intrigue. The essence. Musical sense. What the groove is. How it feels. The notes that are dancing around. Full circle on these things. The mechanics of music. The beautiful possibilities. Melody and harmony came together. All the different tones. As splashes of color. Active notes. New techniques. Independent voices. Keep things open. Telling a story. Chorales. About communication. A cool way to differentiate. That dash of elegance. Different textures of the same thing. By learning both. Tendencies. To do the translation. Rotating around. Chromatic. Simplify stuff. Powerful notes. The whole thing. Connect with it. Showing the good. A fun exercise. The beautiful mix of new, weird, and familiar at the same time. Lightbulb moments. Draws from everything. New colors. A gift. Helping fellow musicians. Harmonic rhythm. The natural note. See through the details. 🔎
Edited by Rebecca Sansom
Set Design by Max Horwich
Podcast Produced by Beformer
Want a better mix 2? Keep your mix engineer creative and proactive. Give them questions rather than answers.
In this pod, I cover how creative communication can empower your collaborators rather than box them in. Turn people into experts instead of tools, and watch how your network can perform! (And love working with you!)
For 30% off your first year with DistroKid to share your music with the world click DistroKid.com/vip/lovemusicmore 🌎
Want to hear my music? For all things links visit ScoobertDoobert.pizza
Subscribe to this pod's blog on Substack to receive deeper dives on the regular 🏊♂️
Pick up my new LP "I" on vinyl in its full spinning colorfulness while they last 🎨
Passion and energy. Open up new doors. Unlocking brains. From one phase to the next. Creative notes. The challenge is always evolving. For later on in the phases. Leave a little bit of room. Really enjoyable. Wax poetically. Thinking of solutions. The pokiness. A positive flywheel. Beings of infinite creativity. Carve out some more space. Leave room for interpretation. Inverted. That wisdom. Making sense of some of the chaos. Being the CEO of your art. Alter the state of the listener. Asking great questions. Practically use that. Impassioned. In both directions. Keeps it fresh. 🥝
Podcast Produced by Beformer
Some musicians do better with chaos. Others under deadlines and with teams. Tristan Clopet is a rare pro who’s done both, and because of it knows the value of working towards a greater goal with a big team (and bigger pressure).
Tristan’s prolific work on film and TV scores gives him a deep insight into the nature of that side of the industry (and how different it is from his touring days supporting X Ambassadors, Billy Bragg, Tove Lo, Glen Hansard, and The Weeknd). It’s a collaborative, deadline-oriented, large effort, with hundreds of creatives contributing to the final work. He shares how inspiring that journey is, and how knowing the boundaries can unlock even more creativity. I loved his story about scoring to Martin Freeman’s solo acting in a car. (Martin Freeman happens to be one of my favorite actors.)
His credits include:
Sony Pictures Television’s StartUp, created by Ben Ketai and starring Martin Freeman, Ron Perlman, Adam Brody, Mira Sorvino, and Edi Gathegi. In 2020, Netflix licensed all three seasons and it quickly became the streamer’s #1 acquired series around the world.
The Universal Studios feature film River Wild, for which he earned an HMMA nomination.
The Infiltrator, starring Bryan Cranston, City of Lies, starring Johnny Depp and Forest Whitaker, Sundance Film Festival winner Crown Heights, starring LaKeith Stanfield, AMC’s Pantheon, with Brandon Roberts, Marco Beltrami, and Buck Sanders, and CBS’s military procedural The Code.
For 30% off your first year of DistroKid to share your music with the world click DistroKid.com/vip/lovemusicmore
Subscribe to this pod's blog on Substack to receive deeper dives on the regular 🏊♂️
Tune into my music and surf the different-yet-connected platforms at ScoobertDoobert.pizza 🍕
Pick up my new LP "I" on vinyl in its full spinning colorfulness while they last 🎨
Connect with Tristan on his:
✏️ IG ✏️ Website
Put it into words. Putting those things together. Keep doing it. That progression. That magic energy. It’s a journey. A key to unlock the door. Creative parameters that do unlock other things. Just being in the room. Anchor points. Accepting imperfection. Discern so much emotion. Either direction’s profound. A nebulous cloud that shifts and moves. A rewarding effect. A wonderful exploration. This weird appetite for going further. Through that journey. The cut has a rhythm. A conversation of contradictions. The push and pull. Hilarious. Magnetizes back to. An apt question. Flowing from A to B, It’s timbre thing. A function for this music. A mix of craft and art. Room to play with. An array of options. Conveying goals. 🎬
Edited by Rebecca Sansom
Set Design by Max Horwich
Podcast Produced by Beformer
Music is more athletic than you may think! I just watched on of my favorite drummers, Nate Smith, and he was like Bruce Lee up there, flowing like water.
Proper technique can save musicians from injury, make them play faster, and let them stay on the road for longer. It’s one of the best ways to break through the intermediate wall, but it’s not talked about enough… so I talked about it!
For 30% off your first year with DistroKid to share your music with the world click DistroKid.com/vip/lovemusicmore 🌎
Want to hear my music? For all things links visit ScoobertDoobert.pizza
Subscribe to this pod's blog on Substack to receive deeper dives on the regular 🏊♂️
Pick up my new LP "I" on vinyl in its full spinning colorfulness while they last 🎨
Dynamic shifts and turns. Very much serving the song. Creative application of techniques. All of that to say. Draw the through-line. Within the rhythm. In interesting ways. Circumvent those limits. Add up to emotion. Progress the instrument itself. About articulation. Keep doing. Opens some doors and opens some minds. The way to shake. The arc of the piece. Unlocked another level. 🔓
Podcast Produced by Beformer
…and what if it could help us invent new instruments?
In this pod, I talk about how musicians can use “vibe coding” tools like Cursor (but how learning a little coding can go a long way)! I think there’s something here. I think it’s about to get a lot easier. And I invite you to try (and fail) with me. We might be able to make something truly new once again.
For 30% off your first year with DistroKid to share your music with the world click DistroKid.com/vip/lovemusicmore 🌎
Want to hear my music? For all things links visit ScoobertDoobert.pizza
Subscribe to this pod's blog on Substack to receive deeper dives on the regular 🏊♂️
Pick up my new LP "I" on vinyl in its full spinning colorfulness while they last 🎨
Fresh ears. Fascinating and fun. Little tendrils. Set up to be creative. Start to bubble up. Opening minds. Interesting and intriguing and powerful. For the practical use of the modern musician. Really wonderful. What the song wants to be. A good example of context. Something far cooler. The digital to analog conversation. Through movement. Paddle out. 🏓
Podcast Produced by Beformer
As A&R at Safari Pedals, Abi brings a unique guitar pedal-driven approach to production. From making coffee disappear (she’s a professional magician!) to helping artists transform gut feelings into honest, soulful records, she shares her philosophy on trust, vibe, and the magic that happens when you strip away pretense. Whether working remotely or popping up in cities around the world for in-person sessions, Abi is out there building genuine connections and crafting records with the artist at the center of the frame. Plus, we dive into her work hosting The Safari Pedals Show and how guitar pedals became her secret weapon in the studio.
For 30% off your first year of DistroKid to share your music with the world click DistroKid.com/vip/lovemusicmore
Subscribe to this pod's blog on Substack to receive deeper dives on the regular 🏊♂️
Tune into my music and surf the different-yet-connected platforms at ScoobertDoobert.pizza 🍕
Pick up my new LP "I" on vinyl in its full spinning colorfulness while they last 🎨
Connect with Abi on her:
✏️ IG ✏️ Website
From the jump. Pumped into this thing. Cool hanging spot. Time is a weird resource. Every which way. Just do the thing. Propel better. A unicorn that’s fallen out of outer space. Make something different. Seeds planted. Gotta figure it out. In a timely fashion. Lots of different paints. To start doing. Understand aesthetically. Open to ideas. The surrounding skills. Think modular. A healthy signal. Sonic fingerprint. Kinda found its groove. Ultimate vibe curators. Fluffy and wonderful. All camps are welcome. For fun ideas. Feel passionate. Physical to sound reaction. Get some crazy sounds. In a different way. Betters creative output. A whole new level of respect. Listenable. So much magic. This all-encompassing thing. Now is the time. Invent a future. Fill up cups. Really excited. In some weird way. Enjoying going all in. Make it happen. The technical. A dash of chaos. Knowing how to make both work. Embracing what is. Go through the journey. 🥾
Edited by Rebecca Sansom
Set Design by Max Horwich
Podcast Produced by Beformer
Would a builder build a house without a hammer? A tattooer do a tattoo without a needle? Would a politician act without a businessman? Of course not!
Every job has the tools that the pro needs to succeed. Music theory is one of ours. Neglect at your own peril. Use the right tools to build cool stuff! Ignore them when you don't need them! (But 80% of the time, you'll need them! Especially if you want to do this every day.)
For 30% off your first year with DistroKid to share your music with the world click DistroKid.com/vip/lovemusicmore
Want to hear my music? For all things links visit ScoobertDoobert.pizza
Subscribe to this pod's blog on Substack to receive deeper dives on the regular 🏊♂️
Pick up my new LP "I" on vinyl in its full spinning colorfulness while they last 🎨
Transmit ideas. Different shapes on top of the foundations. Build new shapes. A creative compulsion. Use the putty. Learn the language by doing. By knowing that. Based around tension and resolution. Sound good under that note. Tendencies. New nouns. In the most elegant and satisfying way. 📚
Podcast Produced by Beformer
Playing drums at Red Rocks or the O2 or the Greek are dreams made reality for Harry Terrell. As producer and multi-instrumentalist, he brings perspective to the drum kit, electronics to the acoustic, and vibe to the studio. In this pod, Harry shares some of his favorite techniques for getting killer drum sounds, navigating music theory, and what it means to be a modern musician. The drums are alive and well!
Chef Harry T is a drummer/producer/multi-instrumentalist/songwriter/chef/tall guy based in the Los Angeles area. He likes to do lots of stuff, including play for Still Woozy, make silly funk jams, write serious love songs about personal development and feelings, push the boundaries of sandwich possibilities, learn new Spanish vocabulary, and stretch out his sore little legs. He also REALLY likes to make music with his best bud Eli Goss, who will join us in the interview at some point, in their best-friendship-band of over 10 years called The Breathing Effect, which basically makes complex-yet-familiar bangers with influences ranging from ambient noise music to 70s Japanese city pop and yacht rock to 2000s indie rock and softcore songwriters.
For 30% off your first year of DistroKid to share your music with the world click DistroKid.com/vip/lovemusicmore
Subscribe to this pod's blog on Substack to receive deeper dives on the regular 🏊♂️
Tune into my music and surf the different-yet-connected platforms at ScoobertDoobert.pizza 🍕
Pick up my new LP "I" on vinyl in its full spinning colorfulness while they last 🎨
Grab Minuendo earplugs for comfy lossless hearing protection 📢
Connect with Harry on his:
✏️ IG ✏️ Website
Feel the momentum. Satisfying to like understand. In these ways that create new things. It’s this very symbiotic relationship. Like foundations of being. Kinda shape. So tactile. Brings the energy. Palpable. So nice to know. Like gravity and also like seasonings. Just kinda go for it. The show must go on, the show must go on. A deeper way of relating to art and humans and just the ways things are connected. Feel like the overtones are really ringing out. Also pushing boundaries. The chemical makeup of the music itself. Kinda newer golden age of recording almost. Sources of inspiration. Is like of the time. That dramatic surprise. Everything’s a new adventure. This visceral reaction thing. Totally scalable. Not waiting around. Kinda fascinating to just see. Sorta new like methodologies. At the source. Down the line. Like using audio. The musical vibe out there in the ethos. As far as like tone goes and stuff. In certain settings. Like a metric modulation. Such a pleasure. This parasympathetic reactive quality. Within the broader production. First things first. Be doing stuff. Finish stuff. To keep the momentum going. Play into the effects. Sounds vibey. A various array. Have the ears. So many people do so many things. Sense of like space. It’s just a beautiful thing. Pretty excellent. To facilitate the connection between people. A whole vast new room of stuff to explore. Like peeling back the secrets of the universe. 🥯
Edited by Rebecca Sansom
Set Design by Max Horwich
Podcast Produced by Beformer
Welcome everyone to the astronaut era. Let the music video arms race begin!
(Check out the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth podcast episodes and/or part one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen or fifteen of the accompanying Substack posts, with music examples!)
For 30% off your first year of DistroKid to share your music with the world click DistroKid.com/vip/lovemusicmore
Want to hear my music? For all things links visit ScoobertDoobert.pizza
Subscribe to this pod's blog on Substack to receive deeper dives on the regular 🏊♂️
Pick up my new LP "I" on vinyl in its full spinning colorfulness while they last 🎨
Watch the Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz (Weird Al) pod mentioned in this episode 🪗
The technology was there. Make a spectacle. A fusion of all entertainment. Paradigm shift. Broadcast and medium based transitions. Just ride out the waves. Trending on this direction. Cultural force. All that fed back. Platform defining. It already kinda is. Incredible timing for that song. In terms of transmission. 📺
Podcast Produced by Beformer
New Orleans is a special place. Just ask Grammy Award-winning John Michael Rouchell. He’s from there and made incredible music with the legends. We talk the history, the prestige, the joy, and the energy of New Orleans. It’s that passion and dedication that led Disney to work with John on Tiana's Bayou Adventure, the ride that updated Splash Mountain at Disneyland. When you’re on a ride — with the music spilling over just like the water itself — now THAT’S a compositional challenge!
For 30% off your first year of DistroKid to share your music with the world click DistroKid.com/vip/lovemusicmore
Subscribe to this pod's blog on Substack to receive deeper dives on the regular 🏊♂️
Tune into my music and surf the different-yet-connected platforms at ScoobertDoobert.pizza 🍕
Pick up my new LP "I" on vinyl in its full spinning colorfulness while they last 🎨
Connect with John on his:
✏️ IG ✏️ Substack
Scaffolding of goals. It’s achievable, it’s doable. That’s when good things happen. A reflection of existence as a human. It’s a spell. Ingenuity. It’s a beautiful thing. The magic is among us. It’s about people. Kinda ripe to be told again. Invigorating. Brave and cool. Continue this legacy. Create a little creative borrowing. Those are the things. Like a wave at the beach. Is this kinda moment of discovery. Get a groove going. Make it feel real. It’s either like it is or it ain’t. Ambrosia. Everything’s getting into everything. There’s this unconscious thing. Learning about that was incredible. Well and good. That gravity. A pretty strange and amazing thing. Delight. In a pluralistic idea towards a common goal. Like collaborate. Make a win-win for both things. Growing together. By design. That is what it is. It’s like love music more, love people more. Be the wellspring of so much great music. Kinda this endless hypnotic thing. Absolute magic. People need to hear it. Very much just taking care of each other. Put it all together. Hafta figure out a way. Getting in the boat and rowing. That is fun. It’s this constantly feeling. What is the set and setting. Designing towards an end. Really met the moment. Bend the world. A reimagining and an elevation. 𓊍
Edited by Rebecca Sansom
Set Design by Max Horwich
Podcast Produced by Beformer
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