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Are you musically curious?

Whatever your level of musical experience, from listener to professional musician, there’s something for you in my podcast Steve Pretty On The Origin of the Pieces.

Each episode I look at some of the more unusual aspects of what music is, where it comes from, and why it’s important to every culture on earth. Along the way, I talk to brilliant guests, feature music of any and every sort, and, frankly, have a lot of fun.

Join me!

#music #podcast #musicpodcast #musicpodcasts #musicproducer #musicproduction #conchshell #trumpet #trumpetplayer #musiceducation #musiceducator

New podcast episode: Opera Special: Voice, Power and the Big Machine is OUT NOW!

Opera bass @barnabyrea_bass joins me backstage at @royalballetandopera for a deep dive into opera from the inside: how one human voice fills a theatre with no microphone, what “placement” and resonance actually mean, why opera singers train for years, and how the whole vast machine of singers, orchestra, conductor, stage crew, history and social ritual holds together.

We recorded this while Barnaby was performing Doctor Grenvil in La Traviata, and he’s currently back at the Royal Opera House singing Hobson in Britten’s Peter Grimes, with performances on 21st, 25th and 28th May.

The episode also grew out of my recent visit to @teatroallascala in Milan, which got me thinking about opera not just as music, but as architecture, class, spectacle, commerce and power.

So yes, there’s voice geekery. But also boxes, gods, stalls, ticket prices, backstage docks, live music economics, and social history, not to mention a dive into the fact that opera can be both massively intimidating and surprisingly accessible.

Listen / watch now via the link in bio.

#originofthepieces #Opera #OperaSinger #BarnabyRea #RoyalOperaHouse

‘So fun’ playing alongside Lottie P, @nic.pendlebury and @stevepretty at The Origin of the Pieces last night at Wilton’s Music Hall London. To add extra excitement, a snippet of the song ‘Plastic’ from our album Ocean Songs. Next stop Latitude festival in July. More info on Ocean Songs via the @soniccollaborations website (in my linktree /bio).

Hackney Colliery Band with Selina Seballo @ Loopfest 📸

#shaunjoycephotography #loopfest #hackneycollieryband #shrewsbury #concertphotography

Ahead of Episode 40 FINALLY dropping soon, here’s a clip from Episode 39: A Cave, A Conch, An Algorithm.

This one came from my collaboration with @whatwedidbefore, talking about the deep history of music, prehistoric instruments, ritual, resonance, AI, and, inevitably, shell instruments.

This clip also includes some footage shot inside the Natural History Museum, where I was lucky enough to record some of these shell instruments overnight a couple of years ago.
One note, in that space, did something that the same note in a normal room simply wouldn’t. Which is a useful reminder that music is never just notes. It’s also where they happen, who’s listening, what the air is doing, and what the room decides to give back.
Episode 39 is out now, and Episode 40 is, at long last, nearly ready to emerge.
🎧 Listen to Steve Pretty On the Origin of the Pieces wherever you get podcasts.
#originofthepieces #musicallycurious #musicpodcast #conchshell #shellmusic #prehistoricmusic #ancientmusic #sounddesign #fieldrecording #resonance #naturalhistorymuseum #podcastclip #musicandplace #experimentalmusic

WELL THEN.

Such a pleasure and privilege to be back out on the road again. We’ve played some beautiful venues, many in towns we’d never visited before. Met loads of brilliant people, drunk a lot of regional beers, seen some amazing views, clocked up a worrying number of miles on the odometer, and generally had the time of our lives playing for you all again.

Huge thanks to everyone who came out, and to all the lovely venues and festivals who hosted us along the way: @landmarkartscentre @shaftesburyartscentre @subroomsstroud @ropetacklearts @cambridgejunction @burymet @princesspavilion_ @voodooroomsedinburgh and many more besides.

Times are TOUGH right now for touring bands, so please keep supporting independent music and venues. We all need your support more than ever and in exchange we promise we’ll make it VERY worth your while.

A couple of festival shows in the diary at @howthelightgetsinfestival and @found.festival, plus a few other bits and pieces, but we’re also very busy cooking up what comes next…

As always, the best place to find us is on the mailing list (sign up via the website). That way we can actually speak to you directly without our algorithmic billionaire overlords deciding whether you hear from us or not.

Thank you so much for the support. Can’t wait to get back out on the road again soon.

#hackneycollieryband #livemusic #independentmusic #supportindependentmusic #uklivemusic

WELL THEN.

Such a pleasure and privilege to be back out on the road again. We’ve played some beautiful venues, many in towns we’d never visited before. Met loads of brilliant people, drunk a lot of regional beers, seen some amazing views, clocked up a worrying number of miles on the odometer, and generally had the time of our lives playing for you all again.

Huge thanks to everyone who came out, and to all the lovely venues and festivals who hosted us along the way: @landmarkartscentre @shaftesburyartscentre @subroomsstroud @ropetacklearts @cambridgejunction @burymet @princesspavilion_ @voodooroomsedinburgh and many more besides.

Times are TOUGH right now for touring bands, so please keep supporting independent music and venues. We all need your support more than ever and in exchange we promise we’ll make it VERY worth your while.

A couple of festival shows in the diary at @howthelightgetsinfestival and @found.festival, plus a few other bits and pieces, but we’re also very busy cooking up what comes next…

As always, the best place to find us is on the mailing list (sign up via the website). That way we can actually speak to you directly without our algorithmic billionaire overlords deciding whether you hear from us or not.

Thank you so much for the support. Can’t wait to get back out on the road again soon.

#hackneycollieryband #livemusic #independentmusic #supportindependentmusic #uklivemusic

WELL THEN.

Such a pleasure and privilege to be back out on the road again. We’ve played some beautiful venues, many in towns we’d never visited before. Met loads of brilliant people, drunk a lot of regional beers, seen some amazing views, clocked up a worrying number of miles on the odometer, and generally had the time of our lives playing for you all again.

Huge thanks to everyone who came out, and to all the lovely venues and festivals who hosted us along the way: @landmarkartscentre @shaftesburyartscentre @subroomsstroud @ropetacklearts @cambridgejunction @burymet @princesspavilion_ @voodooroomsedinburgh and many more besides.

Times are TOUGH right now for touring bands, so please keep supporting independent music and venues. We all need your support more than ever and in exchange we promise we’ll make it VERY worth your while.

A couple of festival shows in the diary at @howthelightgetsinfestival and @found.festival, plus a few other bits and pieces, but we’re also very busy cooking up what comes next…

As always, the best place to find us is on the mailing list (sign up via the website). That way we can actually speak to you directly without our algorithmic billionaire overlords deciding whether you hear from us or not.

Thank you so much for the support. Can’t wait to get back out on the road again soon.

#hackneycollieryband #livemusic #independentmusic #supportindependentmusic #uklivemusic

WELL THEN.

Such a pleasure and privilege to be back out on the road again. We’ve played some beautiful venues, many in towns we’d never visited before. Met loads of brilliant people, drunk a lot of regional beers, seen some amazing views, clocked up a worrying number of miles on the odometer, and generally had the time of our lives playing for you all again.

Huge thanks to everyone who came out, and to all the lovely venues and festivals who hosted us along the way: @landmarkartscentre @shaftesburyartscentre @subroomsstroud @ropetacklearts @cambridgejunction @burymet @princesspavilion_ @voodooroomsedinburgh and many more besides.

Times are TOUGH right now for touring bands, so please keep supporting independent music and venues. We all need your support more than ever and in exchange we promise we’ll make it VERY worth your while.

A couple of festival shows in the diary at @howthelightgetsinfestival and @found.festival, plus a few other bits and pieces, but we’re also very busy cooking up what comes next…

As always, the best place to find us is on the mailing list (sign up via the website). That way we can actually speak to you directly without our algorithmic billionaire overlords deciding whether you hear from us or not.

Thank you so much for the support. Can’t wait to get back out on the road again soon.

#hackneycollieryband #livemusic #independentmusic #supportindependentmusic #uklivemusic

WELL THEN.

Such a pleasure and privilege to be back out on the road again. We’ve played some beautiful venues, many in towns we’d never visited before. Met loads of brilliant people, drunk a lot of regional beers, seen some amazing views, clocked up a worrying number of miles on the odometer, and generally had the time of our lives playing for you all again.

Huge thanks to everyone who came out, and to all the lovely venues and festivals who hosted us along the way: @landmarkartscentre @shaftesburyartscentre @subroomsstroud @ropetacklearts @cambridgejunction @burymet @princesspavilion_ @voodooroomsedinburgh and many more besides.

Times are TOUGH right now for touring bands, so please keep supporting independent music and venues. We all need your support more than ever and in exchange we promise we’ll make it VERY worth your while.

A couple of festival shows in the diary at @howthelightgetsinfestival and @found.festival, plus a few other bits and pieces, but we’re also very busy cooking up what comes next…

As always, the best place to find us is on the mailing list (sign up via the website). That way we can actually speak to you directly without our algorithmic billionaire overlords deciding whether you hear from us or not.

Thank you so much for the support. Can’t wait to get back out on the road again soon.

#hackneycollieryband #livemusic #independentmusic #supportindependentmusic #uklivemusic

WELL THEN.

Such a pleasure and privilege to be back out on the road again. We’ve played some beautiful venues, many in towns we’d never visited before. Met loads of brilliant people, drunk a lot of regional beers, seen some amazing views, clocked up a worrying number of miles on the odometer, and generally had the time of our lives playing for you all again.

Huge thanks to everyone who came out, and to all the lovely venues and festivals who hosted us along the way: @landmarkartscentre @shaftesburyartscentre @subroomsstroud @ropetacklearts @cambridgejunction @burymet @princesspavilion_ @voodooroomsedinburgh and many more besides.

Times are TOUGH right now for touring bands, so please keep supporting independent music and venues. We all need your support more than ever and in exchange we promise we’ll make it VERY worth your while.

A couple of festival shows in the diary at @howthelightgetsinfestival and @found.festival, plus a few other bits and pieces, but we’re also very busy cooking up what comes next…

As always, the best place to find us is on the mailing list (sign up via the website). That way we can actually speak to you directly without our algorithmic billionaire overlords deciding whether you hear from us or not.

Thank you so much for the support. Can’t wait to get back out on the road again soon.

#hackneycollieryband #livemusic #independentmusic #supportindependentmusic #uklivemusic

WELL THEN.

Such a pleasure and privilege to be back out on the road again. We’ve played some beautiful venues, many in towns we’d never visited before. Met loads of brilliant people, drunk a lot of regional beers, seen some amazing views, clocked up a worrying number of miles on the odometer, and generally had the time of our lives playing for you all again.

Huge thanks to everyone who came out, and to all the lovely venues and festivals who hosted us along the way: @landmarkartscentre @shaftesburyartscentre @subroomsstroud @ropetacklearts @cambridgejunction @burymet @princesspavilion_ @voodooroomsedinburgh and many more besides.

Times are TOUGH right now for touring bands, so please keep supporting independent music and venues. We all need your support more than ever and in exchange we promise we’ll make it VERY worth your while.

A couple of festival shows in the diary at @howthelightgetsinfestival and @found.festival, plus a few other bits and pieces, but we’re also very busy cooking up what comes next…

As always, the best place to find us is on the mailing list (sign up via the website). That way we can actually speak to you directly without our algorithmic billionaire overlords deciding whether you hear from us or not.

Thank you so much for the support. Can’t wait to get back out on the road again soon.

#hackneycollieryband #livemusic #independentmusic #supportindependentmusic #uklivemusic

WELL THEN.

Such a pleasure and privilege to be back out on the road again. We’ve played some beautiful venues, many in towns we’d never visited before. Met loads of brilliant people, drunk a lot of regional beers, seen some amazing views, clocked up a worrying number of miles on the odometer, and generally had the time of our lives playing for you all again.

Huge thanks to everyone who came out, and to all the lovely venues and festivals who hosted us along the way: @landmarkartscentre @shaftesburyartscentre @subroomsstroud @ropetacklearts @cambridgejunction @burymet @princesspavilion_ @voodooroomsedinburgh and many more besides.

Times are TOUGH right now for touring bands, so please keep supporting independent music and venues. We all need your support more than ever and in exchange we promise we’ll make it VERY worth your while.

A couple of festival shows in the diary at @howthelightgetsinfestival and @found.festival, plus a few other bits and pieces, but we’re also very busy cooking up what comes next…

As always, the best place to find us is on the mailing list (sign up via the website). That way we can actually speak to you directly without our algorithmic billionaire overlords deciding whether you hear from us or not.

Thank you so much for the support. Can’t wait to get back out on the road again soon.

#hackneycollieryband #livemusic #independentmusic #supportindependentmusic #uklivemusic

WELL THEN.

Such a pleasure and privilege to be back out on the road again. We’ve played some beautiful venues, many in towns we’d never visited before. Met loads of brilliant people, drunk a lot of regional beers, seen some amazing views, clocked up a worrying number of miles on the odometer, and generally had the time of our lives playing for you all again.

Huge thanks to everyone who came out, and to all the lovely venues and festivals who hosted us along the way: @landmarkartscentre @shaftesburyartscentre @subroomsstroud @ropetacklearts @cambridgejunction @burymet @princesspavilion_ @voodooroomsedinburgh and many more besides.

Times are TOUGH right now for touring bands, so please keep supporting independent music and venues. We all need your support more than ever and in exchange we promise we’ll make it VERY worth your while.

A couple of festival shows in the diary at @howthelightgetsinfestival and @found.festival, plus a few other bits and pieces, but we’re also very busy cooking up what comes next…

As always, the best place to find us is on the mailing list (sign up via the website). That way we can actually speak to you directly without our algorithmic billionaire overlords deciding whether you hear from us or not.

Thank you so much for the support. Can’t wait to get back out on the road again soon.

#hackneycollieryband #livemusic #independentmusic #supportindependentmusic #uklivemusic

Are you musically curious?

On Tuesday 19th May I’m bringing Steve Pretty On the Origin of the Pieces to @wiltonsmusichall, one of the most beautiful venues in London.
It’ll be a night of live music, conversation, stories and a few sonic experiments.

My guests include @mrjimbobfromcarter from Carter USM, with songs from his recent records, stories from an amazing musical life, and some surprises along the way.

We’ll also have Ocean Songs from @soniccollaborations, featuring Lottie P from @goatgirlofficial, alongside @nic.pendlebury, @colinriley_composer and me, exploring music, the sea, shells, electronics and the strange things that happen when you put them all in the same room.

Tuesday 19th May, 7pm
Wilton’s Music Hall
Tickets via Wilton’s — link in bio.

#originofthepieces #wiltonsmusichall #StevePretty #JimBob #CarterUSM #GoatGirl #OceanSongs #SonicCollaborations #livemusiclondon #londongigs #whatsonlondon #musicallycurious #musicpodcast #livemusic

Absolutely top night at the My Friend Maisy screening/wrap party. A huge honour to meet Lucy Cousins who was so kind about my music for the show, and just a really lovely and rare opportunity to meet the huge and amazing team who bring a very special show like this to life.

‘We can do anything!’ Is Maisy’s catchphrase and exactly what I needed to hear right now.

#myfriendmaisy #maisymouse @bbcstudios @skytv @karrotanimation @danabruce @brainaud.io

Absolutely top night at the My Friend Maisy screening/wrap party. A huge honour to meet Lucy Cousins who was so kind about my music for the show, and just a really lovely and rare opportunity to meet the huge and amazing team who bring a very special show like this to life.

‘We can do anything!’ Is Maisy’s catchphrase and exactly what I needed to hear right now.

#myfriendmaisy #maisymouse @bbcstudios @skytv @karrotanimation @danabruce @brainaud.io

Absolutely top night at the My Friend Maisy screening/wrap party. A huge honour to meet Lucy Cousins who was so kind about my music for the show, and just a really lovely and rare opportunity to meet the huge and amazing team who bring a very special show like this to life.

‘We can do anything!’ Is Maisy’s catchphrase and exactly what I needed to hear right now.

#myfriendmaisy #maisymouse @bbcstudios @skytv @karrotanimation @danabruce @brainaud.io

Friday 8th May — Falmouth.

We’re bringing the brass, drums, live electronics and general controlled chaos to @princesspavilionofficial, with support from @kingdinosaurband.

Come and see us by the sea!

🎺 Hackney Colliery Band
📍 Princess Pavilion, Falmouth
📅 Friday 8th May
🎟️ Tickets via link in bio

#HackneyCollieryBand #Falmouth #FalmouthEvents #PrincessPavilion #LiveMusicCornwall CornwallMusic BrassBand BrassMusic UKLiveMusic LiveMusic KingDinosaur

Barrow, we are on our way! Can’t wait to play for you tonight @theforumbarrow

#barrowinfurness

TONIGHT! @thelensportsmouth

Last tickets on the door! See you there, Portsmouth!

#portsmouth #portsmouthmusicscene

Super excited to be part of the amazing bill for @loopfestshropshire this year! Great to be sharing a stage with so many brilliant acts