Music

A Sumatran tiger (Panthera tigris ssp. sumatrae) at the National Zoo in Washington, DC.

This Song (And This Tiger) Will Go Extinct Unless We Save It

Smithsonian magazine editor Michael Caruso is among the 400 influencers asked to protect and save the "Endangered Song"

Elvis back stage after a show at the New Frontier Hotel

Elvis’ First Big Vegas Show Was a Total Flop

Playing to the middle-aged crowd at the New Frontier Hotel, Elvis' first Vegas show didn't go over so well

Violinists Can’t Tell the Difference Between Old and New Instruments

Regardless, many report still preferring old-school violins made by Italian masters

Roseland

Why the Roseland Ballroom Had to Stop Dancing

Tonight is the last preformance at the iconic New York concert venue the Roseland Ballroom

A view of the installation of the ATLAS portion of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN.

Art and Science Collide in the Discovery of the Higgs Boson

<i>Particle Fever</i>, a documentary about the physicists who found the "God particle," suggests doing science isn’t that different from making art

New to the collections: John Coltrane's 1965 Mark VI tenor saxophone

A Sax Supreme: John Coltrane's Legendary Instrument Joins the Collections of the American History Museum

Ravi Coltrane, son of jazz musicians John and Alice Coltrane, donates one of his father's three saxophones

John Coltrane (left) “took it further than any [other] tenor saxophone player,” says photographer Chuck Stewart.

New Photos of John Coltrane Rediscovered 50 Years After They Were Shot

During the recording of A Love Supreme in 1964, Chuck Stewart caught the jazz legend in his element

Some Totally Normal People Just Don’t Like Music That Much

While some of us find ourselves quietly crying in the middle of a Target when some dumb song comes on, others are unmoved

Jason Barnes

This Prosthetic Hand Lets a Drummer Play Again

“I’ll bet a lot of metal drummers might be jealous of what I can do now,” he said. “Speed is good. Faster is always better”

Musicians Are Better Able to Identify a World-Class Orchestra by Sight Than by Sound

Allowing musicians to both hear and see an orchestra playing actually lowers their ability to tell if it's world-class

DJ put that record on, it's everybody's favorite song.

The World’s Most Sampled Song Is "Change the Beat" by Fab 5 Freddy

From Nine Inch Nails to Justin Bieber, nearly everybody has sampled this song

Dublin at twilight.

The Inside Scoop on Jury's Irish Cabaret in Dublin, Where Blarney Met Vaudeville

Rediscover a classic Smithsonian Folkways recording of an Irish variety show that first tickled tourists in 1963

The Beatles step onto the tarmac at JFK Airport on February 7, 1964, arriving for their first performance in the U.S.

When the Beatles Arrived in America, Reporters Ignored the Music and Obsessed Over Hair

They'd go on to change American music forever, but the press focused on the moptops

United States athletes at the Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Who Really Composed NBC's Olympic Theme? Not Who You Think

Music for the Olympic Games has a long and complicated history—and John Williams, the Star Wars composer, is only part of it

Alise Ojay claims that a series of routine vocalizations, performed 20 minutes a day over the course of less than a month, can reduce snoring significantly.

The Cure For Snoring Is...Singing?

Choir director Alise Ojay's vocal exercises have been shown to work throat muscles that help silence the snorer within

Conjunto masters Flaco Jiménez and Max Baca team up for an album of duets, "Legends & Legacies," out this month from Smithsonian Folkways

LISTEN: Five-Time Grammy Winner Flaco Jiménez Returns to his Tex-Mex Roots

Virtuoso 12-string bajo sexto player Max Baca talks about his long-time partner Flaco Jiménez

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Copyright Law Kept These Famous Works From Entering the Public Domain This Year

Here is a list of books, movies, music & scientific research that would have entered the public domain today had the 1978 copyright law not been passed

How Does Mistletoe Grow and Other Questions From Our Readers

Airplanes flying upside down, the earliest music and more answers from our experts

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Listen to Classic Holiday Music From Around the World

Go around the world this holiday with Smithsonian Folkways--no reindeer or sleigh required

Playing an Instrument Won’t Make Your Kid Smarter

Music can, however, boost children's creativity and teach them important life skills such as discipline and concentration--but so can other hobbies

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