Steve Pretty on The Origin of the Pieces

Steve Pretty on The Origin of the Pieces Helping you to hear and understand music in new ways. As fun as it is thoughtful, this show aims to help you hear and appreciate music in a new way.

A show for anyone who has ever listened to, played, improvised or written music and wanted to know more about these mysterious sounds. Are they 'auditory cheesecake' as cognitive scientist Steven Pinker claims, or actually a fundamental part of what has made us into modern humans?

04/08/2025

Here’s something a bit different: a full ambient set I performed at ALSO Festival earlier this summer, made entirely from conch and triton shells.

All the sounds were played and processed live using a few bits of tech (Tempera, Cosmos, Push 3, Zoom L6 if you’re into that kind of thing), but everything started life as a puff of air into a shell.

Some people have said it’s their go-to music for working or decompressing — slow, droney, and just strange enough to keep things interesting. Headphones highly recommended.

And yes, there is a silver mannequin torso lurking in the background. It came with the DJ booth. I may now insist on one at all future gigs.

04/08/2025

This hour-long ambient set was performed live at ALSO Festival using only the sound of conch and triton shells, processed in real time with:
– Push 3
– Cosmos
– .audio Tempera
– Zoom L6
No pre-recorded material. Just acoustic breath-powered instruments, fed through a mess of granular processors, delay and looping.
Part of my Shellectronica project — finding the overlap between very old instruments and modern chaos.
🎧 Best on headphones
📺 Full video on YouTube
The torso? Already there when I arrived. I left it alone.

31/07/2025

Sylvia Young passed away yesterday — founder of the Sylvia Young Theatre School and an icon of British stage training.

In this clip from Steve Pretty On The Origin of the Pieces (Episode 27: Eurovision Special with Frances Ruffelle), her daughter tells a story that perfectly captures Sylvia’s legacy — a vinyl of music hall songs, a group of primary school kids, and fundraising to help save . It’s funny, touching and steeped in theatre history.

🎙 Full episode out now on all platforms.

Classic routing for my little tour of the ‘tudes based festivals this week. in Devon with tonight, then all weekend w...
24/07/2025

Classic routing for my little tour of the ‘tudes based festivals this week. in Devon with tonight, then all weekend with all weekend. And these journey times are a lie - took 7 hrs door to door for this first leg to Devon today…

24/07/2025

Music activates multiple areas of the brain — rhythm, memory, movement, lyrics, emotion — all at once. Even when dementia disconnects these pathways, music can help the brain feel connected again.
In Episode 28 of Origin of the Pieces, we explore how music functions not just as art, but as therapy.

🎧 Listen on any podcast app
📺 Or watch on YouTube or Spotify

More: originofthepieces.com

Music in Dementia guide: nhslothian.scot/artspsychotherapies/music-in-dementia

22/07/2025

This clip from Episode 27 with Jonathan Enser — aka Matters Unknown, and also part of Nubiyan Twist — is quite something.

After his leg was amputated, Jonathan fought hard to reclaim it from the hospital (via the Human Tissue Authority). It’s now in his parents’ freezer, awaiting its next incarnation: part of a flute.

The full conversation isn’t just about that — it’s also about finding creativity in tough circumstances, and the day-to-day barriers faced by musicians with disabilities, from venue access to gear setup to simply being seen.

Episode 28 lands tomorrow — and it picks up these threads in another direction.

Another phenomenal few days, this time in Edinburgh and Newcastle. I spent every night I was in Edinburgh at one of my f...
19/07/2025

Another phenomenal few days, this time in Edinburgh and Newcastle.

I spent every night I was in Edinburgh at one of my favourite places in the world, and toasted its legendary founder and one of my all time heroes Bill Kyle with a delicious Caol Ila single malt each night. He introduced me to this incredible whisky, but more than that, he had a profound and last effect on my career, and that of many, many musicians in Scotland and beyond. What a legacy!

I was in edinburgh at the invitation of my friend .cassandra.smit who asked if I’d like to come up and join her for her show, and bring a couple of my buddies (Nicole appears on our latest album, on the track Resounding, which we wrote together). To which I obviously said YES PLEASE. I had an absolute blast playing with friends old and new. Oh, Edinburgh, my heart ❤️

Then to Newcastle for a gig for and It was very damp, but another wonderful city and a lot of fun. Plus I got to see my friend ‘s name plastered all over town for the first time since she was elected Mayor of the North East last year, which was fun!

Once again returning home full of gratitude for such a fun, varied and interesting musical life.

Absolutely sensational rollercoaster few days. Photos in reverse order: MONDAY: collaborative session with .io for a (c...
14/07/2025

Absolutely sensational rollercoaster few days. Photos in reverse order:

MONDAY: collaborative session with .io for a (currently) secret new TV project

SUNDAY: hour long conch bath (!) set at 10am

SATURDAY: improvised live score for the original Nosferatu (1922), set, Steve Pretty On The Origin of the Pieces live podcast recording (all at the absolutely incredible - one of my favourite weekends of the summer for the past 3 years and counting)

FRIDAY: Ocean Songs performance with .pendlebury .dornan1 and choir National Maritime Museum

THURSDAY: final World Music Big Band gig of the summer

A very hectic few days, but as ever, feel spectacularly lucky to be doing such varied, engaging, fascinating and collaborative musical work with so many brilliant people!

03/07/2025

Jono Enser of Matters Unknown and Nubiyan Twist joined me for Episode 27 of Steve Pretty On the Origin of the Pieces to talk about disabled access to music.

We talked about all the things you don’t see — broken transport, heavy doors, sensory overload — and how they can stop someone from even getting to a show, let alone enjoying it.

With the Commons currently debating reforms to PIP and Universal Credit, this feels even more urgent. These benefits are often what make participation possible — in music and in life.

Also: this might be the only podcast episode you’ll hear this year that includes a conversation about turning your leg into a trumpet. Just saying.

🎧 Available wherever you get your podcasts or from www.originofthepieces.com

01/07/2025

Back by popular demand: my latest unboxing video! This time using an actual stone to help me unbox a 3D printed replica of a stone age bone flute. Just like my ancient ancestors would have done when DPD delivered them something.

I’ve been obsessed with these ancient bone flutes since my very first iteration of Steve Pretty On The Origin of the Pieces - way back at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2010!

15 years later, I finally got one.

Can I play it? Absolutely not. Those cavemen had some chops! Time to get shedding... And by chance, I'm currently working on a composition project which this will be the perfect addition to!

30/06/2025

Episode 26 of Steve Pretty On the Origin of the Pieces features the wonderful Jeremy Deller — artist, cultural historian, and the mind behind Acid Brass.

This clip is a quick TB-303 demo: the now-iconic synth that helped invent acid house. And yes, it was supposed to be for basslines to accompany solo performers in hotel lounges. Oops.

We recorded this just before our Acid Brass gig together for The Listening Project, and the episode explores how new musical tools (like the 303) can spark whole movements.

🎧 Listen on your favourite podcast app
📺 Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/hGYbs9cBYRA or Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2K5lMaNDLfqrAhYxm7x6WK?si=QqS_dXNkRie36-56prWmzA
🫧 Featuring: and

Throwback to last week and this sweet setup in such a beautiful location for This was a rehearsal for the world premier...
27/06/2025

Throwback to last week and this sweet setup in such a beautiful location for

This was a rehearsal for the world premiere of the Ocean Songs project which was an absolute delight!

We’re performing the work in full on 11th July. Roll up! It’s going to be a very special night!
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