Desperately Seeking Taylor Swift
The lyrics, the music, and the metaphors of the pop star of the moment.
The Scholars Charting Black Music’s Timeline: Tammy Kernodle & Stephanie Shonekan
Kernodle and Shonekan explore the contributions of Black Americans to classical music and the importance of music and song for social justice movements.
Happy Birthday, Well-Tempered Clavier
Bach’s most influential pedagogical work turns 300 this year. But what’s so “well-tempered” about this clavier, and what’s a “clavier,” anyway?
We’re Going to Need a Bigger Note
Song sharks have been a problem for aspiring lyricists nearly as long as there’s been a music industry.
Loretta Lynn: More than a Great Songwriter
A spokeswoman for white, rural, working-class women, Loretta Lynn used music to articulate the fears, dreams, and anger of women living in a patriarchal society.
Albums: What a Concept!
Long-playing records ushered in the era of the soundtrack, but they also made room for something else—the concept album.
Musical Myth-Busting: Teaching Music History with JSTOR Daily
Harnessing the power of quirk to engage students and inspire research in an online learning environment.
How Wattstax Ushered in a New Era of Black Art
Organized in the aftermath of the 1965 Watts uprising, the music festival showed that something powerful was happening in the Black community.
The Scholars Charting Black Music’s Timeline: Earl Stewart and Michael Veal
Earl Stewart and Michael Veal explore African American music from the Civil War and the evolving sounds of the Black Atlantic.
Every Good Bird Does Fine
Is birdsong music, speech, or something else altogether? The question has raged for millennia, drawing in everyone from St. Augustine to Virginia Woolf.