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Sound Science · Music History · Music Theory · Origins & Oddities · Genre Tombola · Entertaining Noises
Follow a musical thread: Five notes, many musical worlds.
Episode 22 — Rock n roll defibrillators, bierhall melodies and tech trance
Rock ’n’ roll fundraisers for defibrillators, Bavarian beer hall brass at the Hofbräuhaus, and a Tech Trance Prosit — a Genre Tombola trip through how music saves lives, oils communities and powers dancefloors.
Episode 21 — Oud, microtones and underwater soundscapes
Live at Wilton’s with Hackney Colliery Band and harpist Valeria Clarke, plus a deep-dive with Syrian musician Nawar Alnaddaf into the oud, the ney and the emotional power of microtones — with a sea-soaked soundscape in between.
Episode 20 — Afro-joik, arctic ukuleles and 'Big Boobies Is A State Of Mind'
From Bitchy Big Boobies Bang Band in Hemnesberget to an Arctic eight‑string ukulele maker and Afro-joik fusions in Vadsø, this Norway special explores pride, place, Sámi identity and genre-bending joik.
Episode 19 - Narco music, Ola Onabulé and turf wars
Studio time with Ola Onabulé, AI-anxious soul grooves and a corrido-fuelled look at narco music, diss tracks and musical turf wars.
Episode 18 — Serpents, shanties and shells
Serpents in Jeff Miller’s brass cave, sea shanties on the Suffolk coast and shells at sunrise — a walk through how old instruments keep reshaping how we hear.
Episode 17 — Sound balancers, Bowie's favourite studio and Debussy
Inside Maida Vale with BBC sound balancer Martin Appleby, plus Debussy's Arabesques and an AI challenge — an episode about how recordings really work and where musical nuance still wins.
Episode 16 — Double bass, planetary resonance and jam
Exoplanet harmonies at Wilton’s and an in-depth session with bassist Charlie Pyne — an episode about resonance, low end and how the bass quietly runs the show.
Episode 15 — Spirited Away, modular expression and mild despair
A bumper episode that moves from the economic reality of being a working musician to bleepy-bloopy modular synths with Jay Chakravorty, then deep into the music and stagecraft of Studio Ghibli's Spirited Away with John Caird, Brad Haak and Maoko Imai.
Episode 14 — Eliza, a cello made of U-boats and Igbo flow
Eliza on announcing pregnancy live on stage, Verity Simmons on a U-boat-spiked cello, and a Genre Tombola dive into Igbo rap, rhythm and call-and-response.
Episode 13 — Worldwide Washboard Registry, autistic art, rockets and zydeco
Autistic Joy and accessible sound with Maddi Crease, New Orleans washboard and Zydeco with Alex Macdonald, and Robyn Rocket’s inclusive space-trumpet nights at Cafe OTO.
Episode 12 — Frank Turner, Trumpet Mafiosi and not talking about Jimmy
Ashlin Parker on Trumpet Mafia, blues and New Orleans, Frank Turner on UK hardcore ethics and FTHC, and a shared attempt to answer: what is the point of music?
Episode 11 — Lofi hip hop, Zigaboo grooves and New Orleans explorations
Hannah Davis on New Orleans community music, a lofi hip hop mix deconstruction, and a deep funk homage to The Meters and Zigaboo grooves.
Episode 10 — East Anglian cowpunk, trombone marathons, the 'i' word and reverb
Trombonist and ultrarunner Nathanial Dye on living loudly with stage four cancer, Steve's deep dive into reverb from Wilton's to the Natural History Museum, and an AI-boosted East Anglian cowpunk experiment.
Episode 9 — Naked gigs, choral musings and Filament Choir with Hackney Colliery Band LIVE at Wilton's Music Hall
Naked conch shells at Hacknaky, Filament Choir's massed voices and a live Origin of the Pieces x Hackney Colliery Band takeover of Wilton's Music Hall — an episode about risk, community and shared sound.
Episode 8 — Samplers, orchestras and fancy dress harpists
A dog-costumed harp cadenza with the LSO leads into a shed-deep dive on samplers, Amen breaks, synths and a UK hardcore rework of the Origin of the Pieces theme.
Episode 7 — End of year space and slides special, with Chris Hadfield, Rosie Turton and 1201 Alarm
Moon-bound albums with 1201_Alarm, binaural trombone wizardry with Rosie Turton and Chris Hadfield on flutes, space guitars and why music always travels with us.
Episode 6a — A (Space) Christmas Carol, with Chris Hadfield
A tiny festive bonus: astronaut and musician Chris Hadfield performs his ISS-written carol "Jewel in the Night" for Origin of the Pieces listeners, ahead of a full music-and-space episode.
Episode 6 — Festive phasing, guitar percussion and Nitin Sawhney
Festive Reich-inspired phasing, sleepless sleigh bells and a deep studio conversation with Nitin Sawhney on flamenco, Indian classical music, rhythm cycles, modes, identity and what music is actually for.
Episode 5 — Nordic creativity, grand pianos and AI emo
Northern Norway workshops, young players taking charge of their own music, a Fazioli grand piano up close with Birk, and a Genre Tombola deep dive into emo pop with LK Francis and AI-assisted angst.
Episode 4 — Harmonic remembrance, blues shouting and deathgrind taxonomy
Bugles in Abney Park, brass harmonics and Remembrance Sunday, binaural blues shouting with Nicole Cassandra Smit, and a gloriously over-detailed tour through deathgrind with Andrew O’Neill — plus Philip Larkin over blast beats.