Comments on: The Pandora Effect

By: Alan Fresco

Alan Fresco — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:12:21 +0000

Some observations: if Pandora is adding 10,000 songs every month, why do I hear many of the same songs over and over again? At that add rate, how can all or most of the music be “good”? (I’ve heard a lot of tracks that don’t “make it” for me.) When Pandora plays a live track by one of my favorites, it tends to play a whole bunch of live tracks thereafter (not my favorite). If I tell Pandora not to play a song or artist, they seem to return nonetheless. And Owl City > Journey? Give me a break. And, as reported in the New York Times, how can they NOT have any music by Fela Kuti, one of the most important African artists of all time?? BTW, Pandora is NOT legal to be played in a retail store or restaurant but they don’t seem to discourage it being used that way. This is a disservice to musicians because they are not getting a fair compensation.

By: Grondmaster

Grondmaster — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 07:15:36 +0000

One hundred years ago people needn’t go the bandstand or concert hall to hear music; they could also listen to it in their home if the owned an Edison phonograph. The music, which was recorded on outer surface of cylinders, came out the horn when played.

I have one of these that I rescued from the family barn back in the fifties. Its case is in bad condition, but the mechanism still works. I have only a few of the cylinders which are a plastic-like shell over plaster- of-Paris, rather than the older ones made of wax.

By: vinks

vinks — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 06:48:24 +0000

Pandora Rocks! I have had a Four Tet station for awhile, and hours go by while I’m making art and listening to it.

My only complaint about the ads really is that they are for such sutpid stuff, like TV shows. If they were at least for things I cared about, I wouldn’t mind.

Meanwhile, I feel that paying about $40.00 a year for endless access without ads is perfectly amazing and something I am completely happy to do with my next free $40.

as for the world music comment above, I would agree: how about more international stuff?

I also spent some time on the site trying to find out what the algorithm per song was; I’d like to know.

but thanks for this awesome creation; it was my reason for getting highspeed internet!

By: Catherine Treece

Catherine Treece — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:38:13 +0000

I also really love and value Pandora! I don’t mind some repetition because sometimes I miss things and sometimes I need to hear something more than once to know if it’s what I’m looking for. I don’t listen to music on the radio and have some specific areas I’m trying to learn more about. It’s the perfect discovery tool for me. Bravo!

By: Dylan Pocock

Dylan Pocock — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 00:46:58 +0000

I love that there are a number of music-recommendation algorithms. Genomic similarity is valuable for introducing uncommon novelty. But it sounds like people are seeking not genotypic but phenotypic similarities/differences, that is, music with/out a certain feel. Pandora (and other presenters) are in a position to map the subjective phenotype (to the objective genotype), by asking their users to rate and compare. Questions like, what other artist (male, female, instrumental, ensemble) sounds like this artist? What songs have the same mood, changes, topic? Even meta-musical attributes, such as references, influences (even cross-genre), can be mapped this way.

By: Carrie

Carrie — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 23:45:44 +0000

I tried all hour to call in to share how much I love this service, but unfortunately got a busy signal every time. I was so happy at the end then to head the call from one of the members of Barefoot Truth. In fact their band is one of the many that I have discovered on Pandora and they shared an aspect of the service that hadn’t been touched upon. Not only does the service introduce you to new artists, but you can continue to support those artists. I have bought several CD’s and itunes singles but more importantly I have gone to at least a dozen of concerts to support these musicians. In the past year I went to a show in the small Iron Horse Venue in Northampton, MA and then 6 months later saw that band on the billboard top 40 chart.

By: Susan Smereka

Susan Smereka — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 23:19:27 +0000

Tim –
One question/comment i have about Pandora – which i love – Is is possible to integrate male singers more with female singers. When i put in a female singer/song writer it seems all i hear is more women and frankly i like to have a better blend of both…
Susan

By: Queen

Queen — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:51:58 +0000

I love Pon. as well. Unfortunately, I get access to it anymore at work..SUCKS!

I stumbled on it…and has love it since!

By: Charles McEnerney

Charles McEnerney — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:30:40 +0000

Pandora is great (I interviewed Tim Westergren a few years back for my online music interview series, Well-Rounded Radio ( http://www.wellroundedradio.net ), but it’s really just the tip of the iceberg. There are now dozens of music recommendation engines, mp3 blogs, mix tapes, podcasts, etc. for music fans to discover their next favorite acts. As part of a project I’m working on called Musicians for Music 2.0 (also here in Boston) there are dozens of links to check out at htp://www.musiciansformusic2.com Enjoy! Charlie

By: Mark Weisgerber

Mark Weisgerber — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:03:57 +0000

I’ve found Pandora to be useful for finding new artists. I agree the Genome project can create a certain sameness if you listen for long periods. It’s best to create a list with at least two or three disparate artists to create the best effect, i.e. Norah Jones and Van Halen and Brad Paisley.

By: Dayna Lee

Dayna Lee — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:10:29 +0000

Pandora sounds like a great way to find other artists similar to the ones I like but I’m not so sure the Genome model would be the best listening experience. I like variety, I don’t want each song to be like the one before it. When I set Window Media Player on random play(with over 5000 songs to choose from) I find it randomly creates the most wonderful segues from one song to the next,jumping from one song to another that has absolutely no similarities. Recently:King Crimson to Johnny Cash to Spice Girls to Bach. The random play feature provides a more varied and entertaining experience than any radio station or music service I have heard. Everything it plays has my thumbs up.

By: Stewart Deck

Stewart Deck — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:09:25 +0000

Pandora is certainly fun and interesting to play with but, as Alan said above, too frequently it gives me more of what I already know that I like and not enough moments of unpredictable serendipity. Following Ella Fitzgerald with Billie Holliday (with Sarah Vaughan waiting in the wings) is frustratingly formulaic.

Tom also missed the mark when he described Pandora as completely different from previous types of radio, particularly Top 40-driven radio. Not all radio was/is Top40 format and the best independent stations still provide variety and unusual connections. Pandora is more like a solid but not great college radio station except it cuts out those oddball, eccentric wooly moments. Sometimes those oddball moments are grating, but sometimes they can be electrifying.

Pandora is not (yet) electrifying.

By: Ed Sweeney

Ed Sweeney — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:41:30 +0000

@Donna : Yes, there is a simple way to get your laptop to play through your stereo. And you can do it for only about 10-15 bucks.

You just need an audio cord to go from your laptop headphone jack to your stereo. This is typically via the AUX (auxiliary) RCA jack (red and white inputs) but you can probably use any unused RCA audio inputs. Just set your stereo to whatever device you choose when you want to listen.

6-Ft. 1/8″ Stereo to Dual Phono (RCA) Plug Y-cable

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3452165

You may need to get an extension cord if your laptop is going to be more than 5 or 6 feet from your stereo. This would be a 1/8″ cord of some length with a male connection on one end and female on the other.

I use this connection all the time. Good luck and happy listening!

-ed

By: Roger Grounds

Roger Grounds — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:20:21 +0000

Reading through the comments, I noticed that a number of mentions of the limited playlists. As listeners, we must remember that we are the DJs and that we can increase the playlists ourselves. Also, for those that would like to mix up the kind of music, I suggest using the Quick Mix feature. As for the cost, a friend uses it so much that he had to go to paid subscription ($36/yr). But then who could ever come up with $3/month?

Pandora… I love it.

By: Eric West

Eric West — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:08:10 +0000

Streaming music on the web is in general a boon for listeners experiencing a wide spectrum of music genres and musicians. There are hundreds of on-line music streams that make music from around the world available. It never ceases to amaze me how much good music exists out there.

Pandora offers just one way of accessing this music. There are times when listening to similar music works and I do listen to Pandora stations. For those other times, more “traditional” web radio streams are desirable. Here the music selected by a human “webjay” can follow interesting directions. Note by web radio streams, I am refering to those non-commercial emissions. (Think Radio Paradise (California) or Radio Blagon (France)

My 2 cents.

–Eric

By: Kate

Kate — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:59:49 +0000

On the connection between Owl City and Journey: my 17-year old daughter has a very eclectic musical library, and Owl City is one of her favorites. Also, that particular Journey song was the first songs covered by the hugely popular show Glee. If Pandora’s algorithm makes connections in popular trends, then that connection is really logical. I got it as soon as I heard it come up–didn’t strike me as weird at all!

By: Robert B. Pierce

Robert B. Pierce — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:59:20 +0000

I never heard of Pandora until today. I like a great variety of music, much of it early and ethnic music. A check of the genres listed on Pandora’s web page showed no non-Western music; and a check of the sub-genres listed under “Classical,” showed no music from before c. 1700. So no thanks! (Of course such music might be buried somewhere in Pandora, but it is not apparent on the surface.)

By: J Joseph

J Joseph — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:59:15 +0000

Well I was too excited to find out about Pandora, as an American living abroad I was sooooooooooo ready for this, only to be disappointed with some canned answer about because you are not in the US we are sorry you can’t use us…

By: Glenn

Glenn — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:54:05 +0000

Part of the fun of finding new music is the effort it takes to find it. I value the unexpected and sometimes contrary and weird paths that got me here.

I don’t put songs in my mp3 player based on rhythmic patters, breathyness of voice or instrument mix. I doubt there is an algorithm that would have gotten me to Dr. John, Joan Baez, and the New Leviathan Oriental Foxtrot Orchestra, Tom Lehrer, and the Traveling Wilburys.

By: gina

gina — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:53:05 +0000

I see somebody already mentioned Grooveshark, which I discovered only this week. It’s great to be able to request a specific tune, and to be able to replay it if you like.

Slacker is another fun site. After you set up your stations, you can even take them along with you, either on their proprietary players or using one of their free phone apps. It has a very active forum, too.