26 July 2009

Thomas Dolby's notes on TEDGlobal music

On his lively blog, TED's music director, Thomas Dolby, collects his thoughts on the music of this past week. From the post:

As TED’s music director I have the enviable task of selecting the musicians that appear here, and helping them tune their performances to fit the context. It’s an honour for me and for the musicians that play here to be able to add a little fairy dust that help these amazing ideas grow.

Read the whole post >>

Photo: Imogen Heap at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 12: "Connected consequences," July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

Posted by Emily McManus | Permalink

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18 May 2009

"The Singular Thomas Dolby" released today

Thomas Dolby -- TED's Musical Director -- sends us news that EMI has released a two-disc CD and DVD collection that features all his singles and videos.

Thomas Dolby has spent his career at the intersection of music and technology. From his beginnings in the London underground electronica scene, he rose to MTV stardom, then founded a high-tech start-up; his company Beatnik probably made your ringtone.

Watch Thomas Dolby's performances on TED.com:
+ Accompanying Eddi Reader >>

+ With Natalie MacMaster >>

+ With Rachelle Garniez >>

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20 April 2008

Thomas Dolby remixes Radiohead

From the blog of TED's musical director, Thomas Dolby:

I’ve done a remix of Radiohead’s gorgeous ‘Nude’ from the Rainbows album. This was not solicited by the band. They are running a remix contest for their single, and I just went to iTunes and bought the ’stems’ to the song for $5 just like everybody else. ...

Visit the remix site to hear (and vote for!) the Thomas Dolby's remix, or use the widget below >>

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22 February 2008

Thomas Dolby warms up for TED2008

TED's Musical Director, Thomas Dolby, is blogging about his preparations for the conference -- choosing music, working with the amazing house band and special guests ... And he plans to blog about TED music regularly from Monterey, throughout the conference. As he writes:

So what’s the role of music in all of this? Well, imagine this: the TED program is so jam-packed with mindblowing ideas and intellectual stimulation that it’s easy to get a migraine. A day at TED is a rapid-fire barrage of brilliant speakers with eye-opening ideas. You need to take a break every now and then to process what you’re hearing, and to allow your own brain and body to formulate a response to what you hear. It’s not practical to offer 10-minute shiatsu massages to 1,200 people, so we try to do the same with music.

Read more >>

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20 April 2007

Thomas Dolby on TED.com

Featuring the vocals and mischievous bell-playing of accordionist and singer Rachelle Garniez, the TED House Band -- led by Thomas Dolby on keyboard -- delivers this delightful rendition of the Edith Piaf standard "La Vie en Rose."

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30 March 2006

Keeping up with the Dolbys

It's a great month for following TED favorites online. First Malcolm Gladwell, and now Thomas Dolby has launched a blog. Of course, Thomas has always had a strong online presence, but a blog makes everything more personal. How else could we learn what happens in his garden shed?

Posted by June Cohen | Permalink

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