Music History
Documentaries, talks and interviews about records, studios, instruments and the people behind them.
8:40DocumentariesSampling in 1988: an Australian TV documentary
A time capsule of the sampling debate at its start; many of the arguments are still being made today.
18:09Genre & scene historyThe Amen break: how one six-second drum loop shaped modern music
Recommended by 15 people on Hacker News between 2011 and 2026, usually as the place to start on the Amen break and the story of sampling.
41:12Genre & scene historyTrackers and the sound of 16-bit music
Explains a whole production culture most DAW users have never seen.
1:25:38Producer iconsSampling Soul: a Duke class with 9th Wonder
Hip-hop production taught as serious music history.
26:44DocumentariesJ Dilla's record collection
Crate digging from inside one of hip-hop's most important collections.
1:19:57Genre & scene historyThe Art of 16 Bars
A feature-length look at the rapper's side of the record.
1:45:38Talks & interviewsBernstein: musical phonology
A famous lecture series on why music works the way it does.
13:35Genre & scene historyThe Marvel Symphonic Universe: why film scores sound alike
A sharp essay on temp music and why so many scores blur together.
1:16:21Talks & interviewsTantacrul: "Notation must die", the battle over how we read music
A funny, deeply researched video essay on why notation is the way it is.
44:40Records & sessionsMiniDisc: an appreciation
A thorough history of a format many home studios once relied on.
19:40Talks & interviewsDesigning a free music font for MuseScore
A rare look at the design work behind notation software.
22:46Records & sessionsCassettes at their best
Challenges the idea that cassettes always sounded bad.
23:58Producer iconsWhat top producers do in the studio
A look at many producers' working habits in one place.
4:40Genre & scene historyThe history of the MPC
The instrument that shaped beatmaking.
58:32Genre & scene historyHoward Goodall's Story of Music, part 2
Continues an enjoyable history series.
39:27DocumentariesJ Dilla: Still Shining
A tribute from the people who knew him.
1:04:05Producer iconsMadlib on sampling and his career
A rare long interview with a famously private producer.
1:28:13Genre & scene historySynth Britannia
The best-known documentary on how synth-pop happened.
58:53Genre & scene historyHoward Goodall's Story of Music, part 1
A clear, enjoyable history of how music was invented.
33:39Talks & interviewsThe interface design of MuseScore
Why music software is hard to use, told with humour.
1:00:57Talks & interviewsHow the DOOM (2016) soundtrack was made
A rare, detailed look at how a heavy game score was built from synths and processing.
46:33Talks & interviewsHow MuseScore 4 was made
An honest, funny account of designing music software.
15:58Genre & scene historyThe history of the drum machine
A well-made short documentary on a central instrument.
31:12Producer iconsPharrell Williams with students at NYU
Hear one of pop's most distinctive producers answer students' questions.
1:26:08DocumentariesDavid Bowie: Sound and Vision
A portrait of a restless studio innovator.
12:54Genre & scene historyThe ingredients of a classic house track
A short, clear history and breakdown.
58:15Genre & scene historyReggae: the story of Jamaican music
Dub and reggae shaped modern production.
10:23Talks & interviewsAndrew Sorensen: The Concert Programmer
A glimpse of programming as performance.
10:19Records & sessionsThe Tefifon
A curious lost audio format.
14:04Talks & interviewsTest rigs for emulating a Mega Drive sound chip
Shows the care behind accurate emulation.
18:41Talks & interviewsEmulating the DX7 the hard way
A deep look at how a classic synth really works.
58:37Genre & scene historyHoward Goodall's Story of Music, part 3
Continues an enjoyable history series.
49:48Producer iconsKendrick Lamar and Rick Rubin in conversation
Two great artists on how they work.
9:54Genre & scene historyBoom Bap Heroes: the ASR-10
The story of a classic hip-hop sampler.
21:42Genre & scene historyDiscovering Electronic Music (1983)
A charming snapshot of synths at the start of the MIDI era.
57:20Producer iconsDJ Premier breaks down his classics
An hour with one of hip-hop's great producers.
19:05Genre & scene historyThe kick drum, explained by a musicologist
A thoughtful, unusual view of a basic sound.
49:01Genre & scene historyTwo Tone Britain
A well-made genre history.
40:24Genre & scene historyI Was There When House Took Over the World
First-hand stories from house pioneers.
56:43DocumentariesPrince: A Purple Reign
A portrait of one of music's great producers.
30:16Records & sessionsDan Deacon making Bromst: player pianos and dense arrangements
A rare, unhurried look at an experimental electronic album being made, with real instruments played by MIDI.
13:33Producer iconsDaniel Lanois on making U2's Achtung Baby
A great producer on rescuing a record that almost didn't happen.
10:38Studios & consolesDaniel Lanois in his studio
See the tools and habits behind a famous sound.
16:12Producer iconsLido Pimienta and Chancha Via Circuito, in their own words
Two of Latin America's most original producers, on how they work.
6:45Genre & scene historyChancha Via Circuito on Andean digital cumbia
A producer who built a scene from folk roots and laptops.
25:12Producer iconsJeremy Dutcher on preserving a language through music
The story behind one of the most original records of the last decade.
23:21Live sessions & performancesJeremy Dutcher at the Tiny Desk
Archival recordings turned into living music, performed live.
3:51Live sessions & performancesCity and Colour and Ruby Waters play "Ahead by a Century"
A Canadian classic, played simply and well.
9:22Talks & interviewsTanya Tagaq on throat singing
A powerful, unusual voice explained by the artist herself.
4:06Genre & scene historyThe Halluci Nation: "Electric Pow Wow Drum"
Hear how a new genre was built from powwow and club music.
4:43Genre & scene historyDJ Shub with the Northern Cree Singers: "Indomitable"
Powwow step from one of the producers who started it.
4:38Live sessions & performancesSammy Brue covers "Pancho and Lefty" on Van Sessions
A small, well-recorded live session from an independent series.
16:05Live sessions & performancesElisapie: a live session and conversation
A stripped-back session from one of Canada's most distinctive voices.
6:25Live sessions & performancesCharles Bradley sings Black Sabbath's "Changes", live
A raw, unforgettable vocal performance, recorded simply.
30:53Studios & consolesInside Capitol Studios
Shows how a legendary studio's rooms shape its sound.
56:41Studios & consolesThe Abbey Road story: a history of recording innovation
Connects one studio's inventions to how records are still made.
6:16Studios & consolesThe Foo Fighters' studio and the Sound City desk
The story of one console that made rock history.
17:46Studios & consolesMuscle Shoals Sound Studio
The small-town studio behind a run of classic records.
46:41Studios & consolesRick Beato tours Abbey Road Studios
A musician's tour of the most famous studio in the world.
44:31Studios & consolesLe Studio, Quebec: temple of sound
A studio's story told by the people who worked there.
5:11Studios & consolesDave Grohl's studio tour
The desk from Sound City, in its new home.
30:00Studios & consolesFAME Studios in 1970
Rare footage of a working studio at its peak.
1:02:07DocumentariesThe Art of Listening
A thoughtful reminder of how many hands shape a record.
9:23Records & sessionsInside the Logic session for Charli XCX's "Club Classics"
A rare look inside a current hit's actual session.
9:52Records & sessionsThe 1975 open the stems for "Part Of The Band"
Hear a song change from demo to final, part by part.
25:26Records & sessionsWhy older records sound the way they do
Turns "it sounded better then" into choices you can make today.
26:20Records & sessionsBrendan O'Brien's production techniques, explained
A great producer's methods, heard through the records themselves.
13:57Producer iconsTame Impala's ten production and writing insights
Hard-won lessons from one of the most distinctive home producers.
8:46Genre & scene historyErnesto Djédjé: "Ziglibithiens" (Ivory Coast)
Ivorian ziglibithy from Ernesto Djédjé, via Analog Africa.
44:43Genre & scene historyPeruvian psychedelic cumbia, salsa and pop from Infopesa
Peruvian psychedelic cumbia, salsa and pop from the Infopesa label.
5:05Genre & scene historyThe Good Samaritans: "Onughara" (Nigeria, 1982)
Nigerian Edo funk from Analog Africa's archive.
46:23Genre & scene historyTransmigration: a vinyl set of music in transit, 1968–1975
Records from 1968 to 1975 that crossed borders, played on vinyl.
47:20Genre & scene historyHawaiian grooves: a vinyl set with Roger Bong of Aloha Got Soul
Hawaiian soul and funk from the Aloha Got Soul label, on vinyl.
45:03Genre & scene historyJapanese soul from the 70s: a vinyl set with Kengo
An hour of 70s Japanese soul and light mellow, all on vinyl.
3:53Genre & scene historyFadoul: "Al Zman Saib" (Morocco, 1971)
Fadoul's raw Moroccan funk from 1971: James Brown by way of Casablanca.
3:37Genre & scene historyDalton: "Alech" (Tunisia, 1973)
Tunisian funk from 1973 that sounds like nothing else.
3:42Genre & scene historyHamid El Shaeri: "Ayonha" (Libya and Egypt, 1980s)
Libyan-Egyptian pop from the 80s, reissued by Habibi Funk.
4:16Genre & scene historyThe Lijadu Sisters: "Orere-Elejigbo" (Nigeria, 1979)
The Lijadu Sisters' Afro-funk, from the Numero Group reissue.
5:01:15Genre & scene historyAdam Neely plays "the lick" for five hours
The jazz world's oldest joke, played for five hours. Dip in anywhere.
2:54Talks & interviewsBill Bailey plays the Hokey Cokey as Kraftwerk
Bill Bailey turns the Hokey Cokey into Kraftwerk, one synth at a time.
1:12:46Records & sessionsAvicii building a remix in the studio (2011)
A rare, unhurried look at how a major dance producer actually worked, decision by decision.
1:12:54Talks & interviewsCall Super and Parris in conversation, with a listening session
Two producers explain what they listen for in records, which is useful context for anyone shaping their own sound.