Music Music tech
Listening to birdsong — and the instruments that mimic it
Okay, class: today’s reading includes a short but inspiring passage by Estevan Carlos Benson, who has lately been suggesting we treat our musical listening biome in the same way that we do our gut. Along the way, we get birdsongs and whistle bottles from Ecuador millennia ago and Peru today.
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teenage engineering might quit synths, but parody can’t quit them
teenage engineering CEO Jesper Kouthoofd made waves when he casually mentioned he’d told the company he founded to quit making synthesizers. Whatever is coming from the Stockholm company, the jokes they inspire show no signs of abating and — this seems an opportunity.
Peter Kirn - October 9, 2026
Gear Music tech Tech
Watch what Herbie Hancock had to say about technology in 1984
It’s time to dig into the archives. I’d seen this before, but it hits differently now. Herbie Hancock jams out in the studio with Quincy Jones in a 1984 film. It’s notable for what Herbie says with his music, with his approach to the machines, and with how he thinks about humans.
Taco Tuesday: reason to be cautiously optimistic about tariff relief
Peter Kirn - February 24, 2026
Gear Music tech Tech
