My first thought was, ‘Wow, that’s what the Internet sounds like!’ When you open your computer and everyone’s talking at you suddenly. But I was really wanting to hear the sound of jumbled talking, where you can’t understand what’s going on — and then, suddenly, one beautiful, simple chord.

— 

Violinist and vocalist Caroline Shaw on Partita for 8 Voices, the a cappella vocal piece that just won her the Pulitzer Prize for music. At 30, she is the youngest-ever recipient of the music Pulitzer. 

Hear Partita for 8 Voices now.

Tumblr Staff: Announcing the #music tag on Tumblr.

music:

After hearing much demand from the bloggers and fans on Tumblr, we have finally launched a #music tag page. 

Track the new tag to stay up on the best new music, videos, artwork and photos on Tumblr, hand-picked by members of the community. The tag editors come from different areas of the music world, and all share a common passion for the sport.

Been following the #music tag on Tumblr for a few months now. Necessary discovery there. —Lars

Music modulates levels of dopamine in the brain which is a chemical responsible for reward and pleasure. It also modulates serotonin levels and norepinephrine, a stimulant. And in the right combinations, these can give rise to feelings of ecstasy and intense pleasure — almost a sense of being at one with the world.

— Daniel Levitin via Who Needs Drugs When You’ve Got Music?

We sure do listen to a lot of music at the office. Like, obsessively. So… culled from All Songs Considered, Alt.Latino, features from our blogs (The Record, Deceptive Cadence, A Blog Supreme), and stories heard on our air, we’ve started a Spotify playlist simply titled, “What NPR Music Is Listening To.” Right now, it’s got everything from Neil Young to KRS-One to Taylor Swift to Titus Andronicus to Miguel Zenon to Holly Herndon to Pig Destroyer. Subscribe now and we’ll be adding a slew of new tracks every week.

(Source: Spotify)

It’s Bond Week at NPR! Of the many stories we’ve reported on, the one near and dear to our hearts is an interview with the guitarist who played the iconic theme song (his name is Vick Flick, no joke). We’ve put together a Spotify playlist of every James Bond theme song we could find. What’s your favorite?

(Source: Spotify)

What song would you want played at your funeral? It was just one of six questions recently posed by the British newspaper The Guardian and when we asked for just six songs, we got thousands of answers. Listen to a select playlist of your funeral songs via Spotify, then check out more responses at Deceptive Cadence.

(Source: Spotify)

Chained to your desk all day? Then stand up! It’s one of many Twitter- and Tumblr-friendly public service announcements provided by web producer Mel Kramer at WHYY’s Fresh Air on a daily basis since that health segment first ran in March. And now after six years in public radio, she’s going to med school full-time. But don’t worry, Mel isn’t leaving public radio for good — you can catch her contributing to NPR’s health blog Shots in the near future.

As a tearful see-ya-around to Mel, I’ve compiled a soundtrack to Stand Up! There are many songs all sharing the title “Stand” (R.E.M., Sly & the Family Stone, Motorhead, Rascall Flatts), “Stand Up” (Minor Threat, Al Green, Ludacris, um… One Direction), and, of course, “Stand by Me,” “Stand by Your Man,” and, for the anthropophobic, “Don’t Stand So Close to Me.” Good luck, Mel! —Lars

(Source: Spotify)

Is it possible to make a list of albums everyone can agree on? All summer-long, we’ve posted one survey per week where you tell us the albums you love, hate or haven’t really heard. But now we have a running Spotify playlist of songs from (almost) every album that’s been nominated. Give a listen and vote.

(Source: Spotify)

40 Songs About Meat: You don’t realize how many ska songs there are about food (spam and hot dogs, in particular, because, you know, it’s funny) until you make a list like this one. But when I asked earlier today for songs about meat, y’all spanned the spectrum — from fried chicken adoration (Charles Mingus, Merle Travis) to questionable concoctions (“Pork Soda,” “Meatshake”) to randy metaphors (the NSFW “Kielbasa” by Tenacious D and “Steak for Chicken” by The Moldy Peaches).

And to be fair (and technical — I never said the songs had to be about eating meat), there are a few pro-veggie songs thrown in: “Meat is Murder” by The Smiths (of course), “Beef” by Boogie Down Productions, “Meat is Still Murder” by Propagandhi, and others. Stayed tuned to Morning Edition as they continue Meat Week, including a segment tomorrow on the cost of eating meat.

(Source: Spotify)