Music
A Brief History of the Harmonica
How the world’s handiest instrument took over American music
Meet Barbara Dane and Her Proud Tradition of Singing Truth to Power
From Mississippi Freedom Schools, to free speech rallies at UC Berkeley, and in the coffeehouses, her protest music took her everywhere
A Quest to Return the Banjo to Its African Roots
The Black Banjo Reclamation Project aims to put banjos into the hands of everyday people
Hear the Musical Sounds of an 18,000-Year-Old Giant Conch
The shell was played for the first time in millennia after being rediscovered in the collections of a French museum
Celebrate Black History Month With These Free Virtual Events
From online exhibitions to panel discussions, here are more than a dozen events hosted by museums and other cultural institutions
A New Museum in Nashville Chronicles 400 Years of Black Music
The culmination of two decades of planning, the National Museum of African American Music opened its doors last month
How Black Composers Shaped the Sound of American Classical Music
A new project seeks to elevate artists like Harry T. Burleigh and Florence Price, whose work has been ignored by white audiences
Why the Newly Released 1980s Album 'Sons of Ethiopia,' by the Ethiopian D.C. Band Admas, Is Going Viral
Admas draws from and rearranges “golden era” Ethiopian music with then-fairly-new synthesizer and drum-machine rhythms.
From the 'Sidedoor' Podcast: How a Woman-Led Record Label Spread Songs of Protest and Revolution
This episode from the sixth season of the Smithsonian's "Sidedoor" podcast delves into the history of Barbara Dane's revolutionary Paredon Records
Their Doors May Be Closed, but Embassies Are Still Showing People the World
From cooking demonstrations to poetry readings to special exhibitions, exploring another country has never been easier
The True History Behind 'One Night in Miami'
Regina King's directorial debut dramatizes a 1964 meeting between Cassius Clay, Malcolm X, Sam Cooke and Jim Brown
Musician Sunny Jain Reflects on Jainism, Jazz and the Punjabi Dhol Drum
While the originations of the dhol are not known with complete certainty, what is known is that it is a sound that has migrated
Ten Innovators to Watch in 2021
These visionaries are imagining an exciting future with chicken-less eggs, self-piloting ships and more
Kid Ory Finally Gets the Encore He Deserves
The childhood home of the musician who put New Orleans jazz on the map will soon open to the public
An Evening With Martin Sheen and 24 Other Smithsonian Programs Streaming in January
Kick off the New Year with Smithsonian Associates' virtual multi-part courses, studio arts classes and study tours
Australia Changes National Anthem Lyrics to Recognize Its Long Indigenous History
"Advance Australia Fair" no longer calls a nation with a 65,000-year history "young and free"
'The Great Gatsby,' Songs by Ma Rainey and Other Classic Works Are Now in the Public Domain
Canonical books, songs and films became free to use in 2021
How Elvis Helped America Eliminate Polio
The rock star's much-publicized vaccination inspired reluctant U.S. teens to get inoculated
How Young America Came to Love Beethoven
On the 250th anniversary of the famous composer’s birth, the story of how his music first took hold across the Atlantic
Inside the Monumental Effort to Restore Notre-Dame's Grand Organ
Workers spent four months painstakingly dismantling the musical instrument, which is only set to sound again in 2024
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