Music Where are all the STEM songs hiding?

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Popular songs predominantly focus on human relationships, particularly romantic ones, with logical or STEM-themed songs being exceedingly rare. While some modern songs explore different topics, they often lack mainstream visibility. The emotional nature of music is emphasized, suggesting that songs are designed to evoke feelings rather than convey logic. Comedic STEM songs exist but are typically considered novelty items, lacking the emotional depth that resonates with audiences. Examples of STEM-related songs include works by artists like Neil Young and Monty Python, which touch on environmental themes and scientific concepts, respectively. The rarity of STEM songs is attributed to their inability to engage listeners emotionally in the same way as traditional love songs. Additionally, the complexity of STEM subjects often makes them less accessible for musical expression, leading to a preference for more relatable themes. Ultimately, while there are songs that reference scientific ideas, they often do not achieve the emotional impact that characterizes popular music.
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  • #102
The brilliant song "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" by Canadian musician Gordon Lightfoot contains numerous STEM references including the static and loaded weights of the cargo ship, several integral ship time and calendar (seasonal) references, descriptions of wind, waves and weather, and interesting distance vs. time comparisons that might have saved the vessel. Numbers are used throughout the song to connect the listener to the doomed crew and the bereaved survivors ashore.

Lightfoot weaves technical accuracy with ancient lore and modern musical instruments into a beautiful haunting melody that transcends the relatively mundane original subject matter.
 
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  • #103
I guess the several indian (native american) words are part of the lore.

 
  • #104
I'm surprised that apparently nobody has mentioned Tom Lehrer yet.

[added: ah, now I see Tom has been mentioned. Serves me right for relying on the forum's thread search, which can't peek into videos and extract the text from them. :wink: ]



 
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  • #105
While not technically a song, here is Albedo 0.39 by Vangelis, from the 1976 album of the same title.
 
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  • #106
Metastaseis was inspired by the combination of an Einsteinian view of time and Xenakis' memory of the sounds of warfare, and structured on mathematical ideas by Le Corbusier

 
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  • #107
Without answering the OP's central question, while reading PF today I listened to "Higgs Boson Blues" by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds on YouTube music. The STEM references seem closer to popular memes than attempts at extrapolating science. Still, an entertaining bluesy song.

Edit: added this Youtube video.
 
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  • #108
Upon only reading the title of the topic but not even trying to read any of it, that being https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/where-do-the-electrons-go.996390/ in the Astronomy and Astrophysics forum, the title made me think of the rhythm and melody of the line and titled song, "Where have all the flowers gone". See the way they fit:

Code: 
Where do   THE 
Electrons   GO
Code: 
Where have  ALL
The flowers  GONE
 
  • #109
Dobrinka Tabakova
Einstein considered light
 
  • #110
Natural Science... (if no one posted it already).


I am more into the tune of this song than of its lyrics.
 
  • #111
StatGuy2000 said:
Since we are on the topic of STEM songs, Neil deGrasse Tyson was asked on the popular YouTube show First We Feast by host Sean Evans on rap lyrics with references or comments on science.

(Note: Skip ahead on the video to 11:56.)



Didn't he miss the fact that the lyrics say astrology and not astronomy?
 
  • #112
Does anyone remember these guys?

 
  • #113
This song implies that music is derived from theoretical physics, ergo all music is STEM.



Here again

 
  • #114
While math rock is an entire genre, it's misleading because there is generally no interesting math involved, just "weird" time signatures, which Balkan folk and West African music often blows out of the water either way.

On the other hand, Iannis Xenakis is a well known composer whose music actually involved non-trivial mathematical ideas:



Unfortunately, it's not exactly catchy lol
 
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  • #115
AndreasC said:
On the other hand, Iannis Xenakis is a well known composer whose music actually involved non-trivial mathematical ideas:



Unfortunately, it's not exactly catchy lol

Not bad. Listening as I try to type. Disorientating. Reminds me of Weber IMS.
 
  • #116
On the subject of math rock, while not really a genre I enjoy very much, I do have some favorites. Here's some:

G.O.A.T-Polyphia:

Very virtuosic, tons of fun to (try to) play and just very new sounding.

In the Absence of Strong Evidence to the Contrary, One May Step Out of the Way of the Charging Bull - Don Caballero


This is kind of a deep cut by an underappreciated band, it's extremely complex, very unusual and energetic, which is what you expect from a math rock song.

Badger - TTNG


Another underappreciated band. This entire album is very pretty and all the songs are virtually impossible to play.

Frame By Frame - King Crimson


Alright, here's one for the boomers around! King Crimson isn't technically considered math rock usually, but imo they definitely fit the bill sometimes. This song has a very interesting main riff or rather two slightly modified versions of the same riff going in and out of sync, creating a very nice effect.

Drip - Tigran Hamasyan


OK, Tigran Hamasyan isn't usually considered math rock either, but he has a lot of math rock adjacent songs. This one isn't really one of the more mathy ones, but it is my favorite. Here's a nice video on the more rhythmically insane ones:
 
  • #117
Well if you already mention polyphia, then there's sithu aye a guitarist who plays the guitar with his instrumentals with physics themes:
 
  • #118
MathematicalPhysicist said:
Well if you already mention polyphia, then there's sithu aye a guitarist who plays the guitar with his instrumentals with physics themes:

Oh yes I forgot about him!

Also Physics House Band, which I'm not really sure what it has to do with physics but physics is in the name, and they're pretty great:
 
  • #119
Here's one from 1683. I just LOVE harpsichords.
 
  • #120
A current thread in Astronomy sub-forum reminds me of the STEM inspired "Hearing Solar Winds" by Harmonic Choir. The first time I heard these songs on an experimental 'underground' FM station, David Hykes explained that the inspiration and cadence came from listening to audible signals from the Sun.

The DJ interviewer played selections from the solar survey then Harmonic Choir songs. Beautiful and relaxing.
 
  • #121
There's always this.
 
  • #122
This


and this


And Kate Bush has already had 2 mentions here's a third (brrrr)
 
  • #123
I was sweeping out back and dropped my broom on the spot when I remembered this.

 
  • #125
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  • #126
  • #127
Thank you dear BillTre for sharing that with me! 😊
Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time Kindle Edition
by Dava Sobel

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN:

Poem: A Unified Theory of Love

Science in meter and verse

By Dava Sobel, Kit Wienert on February 1, 2021

Edited by Dava Sobel

Should I walk the Planck
length between my heart

and yours, drown in the
liquid abyss of space-time

deep within my sea dreams
that scope and chart macro

geometries of love by
star arc in night sky,

heaven's whirls of light and
elemental fire would still

shimmer through unfathomed
depth and distance to mark

in micro beats of time
our bodies' magnetic needs.

In bottomless dark we flicker
into being, instant inflation

of nothing into something's
minute entanglements forever

trading quantum places,
to fuse and emanate

our invisible human essence
in and out to infinitude.

###
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/poem-a-unified-theory-of-love/#
I love this poem!
 
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  • #128
Are you aware of the audio meaning of the word stem?

Since english isn't my first language I'm not sure if this other meaning is plain to a native English speaker. Reading your discussion here the coincidence seemed to me mildly entertaining (funny seems too strong a word for such a sought and/or strained comparison :) ).

In this sense of the word STEM songs are extremely abundant. :)
 
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  • #129
sbrothy said:
Are you aware of the audio meaning of the word stem?

Since english isn't my first language I'm not sure if this other meaning is plain to a native English speaker. Reading your discussion here the coincidence seemed to me mildly entertaining (funny seems too strong a word for such a sought and/or strained comparison :) ).

In this sense of the word STEM songs are extremely abundant. :)
det er tilfældigt og sjovt!

I did not know that!
Yes in this context STEM is science technology maths and Engineering. We have found quite a few Stem related STEM song though too!
 
  • #130
POETRY FOUNDATION

COLLECTION

Poetry and Music

Composed, produced, and remixed: the greatest hits of poems about music.
Poetry and music have been intertwined for thousands of years. In antiquity, poems were often sung: the first lyric poets in ancient Greece performed their work to the accompaniment of the lyre, and the oldest anthology of Chinese poetry, the Shijing, was a collection of songs. In southern Europe in the middle ages, the popularity of troubadour poets granted them unprecedented freedom of speech and social influence in their time, and their lyrical work would influence European poetry for centuries. The ballad form continues to be a common form for both poems and songs. Emily Dickinson famously wrote her sometimes irreverent poems to the rhythms and forms of church hymns, and more recent poets such as W.H. Auden, J.D. McClatchy, and Eileen Myles have written successful opera libretti.
Today poets still draw on the forms and rhythms of different musical traditions, from jazz, rap, and hip-hop to folk songs and country music. In this collection, we’ve selected poems, articles, and audio and video material that touches on the dynamic, ongoing relationship between these two art forms.
[ . . . ]
###

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/collections/148663/poetry-and-music
 
  • #131
they aren't so rare:


There's no better race than Scottish... Scottie do this scottie do that.
 
  • #132
He can't change the laws of physics but I can just tweak a little bit here and there and whomo new laws!
 
  • #133
As Physics says, "Time is always Positive". It is all about our thinking which makes it negative. So persuade your mind to believe in Science.
 
  • #134
  • #136
Song Stems: 5 Places To Find Stems For Remixing Songs

By Stevo

Published Oct 30, 2017

Whether you're a DJ, producer, or record label, stems have become one of the most popular topics in the music industry.

Stems enhance creative possibilities and whether it's a drum stem, bassline stem, melody stem, or even a vocal stem, stems help artists' musical abilities. While it can be difficult to come across song stems, we have compiled 5 ways to find song stems online.

What Are Song Stems?

Song stems (aka multitracks) are individual sections of a song. For example, there is a separate stems for vocals, strings, and synths within a single song. Producers will then take the song stems in order to remix the tracks. Stems are simply the channels bounced down to audio files.

[ . . . ]

###
https://www.edmsauce.com/2017/10/30/song-stems/
 
  • #137
Mary Conrads Sanburn said:
Song Stems: 5 Places To Find Stems For Remixing Songs

By Stevo

Published Oct 30, 2017

Whether you're a DJ, producer, or record label, stems have become one of the most popular topics in the music industry.

Stems enhance creative possibilities and whether it's a drum stem, bassline stem, melody stem, or even a vocal stem, stems help artists' musical abilities. While it can be difficult to come across song stems, we have compiled 5 ways to find song stems online.

What Are Song Stems?

Song stems (aka multitracks) are individual sections of a song. For example, there is a separate stems for vocals, strings, and synths within a single song. Producers will then take the song stems in order to remix the tracks. Stems are simply the channels bounced down to audio files.

[ . . . ]

###
https://www.edmsauce.com/2017/10/30/song-stems/
Yes indeed, that is a definition of STEM in music

The STEM in this thread is of the sciencey kind ;)
 
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  • #138
Well I just got back from Mare Island! Oh what a beautiful day~ husband and Gracie Girl (dog) and me hiking and looking out into the bay while sitting on a log eating a sandwich and a diet coke. Of course I gave Gracie half of my sandwich. :smile: We sang a song !

U2 - Beautiful Day (Official Music Video)​

 
  • #139
Higgs Boson Hornpipe:

 
  • #140
Kate Bush, Pi

 
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  • #141
Mandelbrot Set

 
  • #142
pinball1970 said:
This is clever but I would have preferred them in order or at least by group or something. This version has alkali metals with halogens, inert gases with heavy metals. A bit of a Mish mash
As I recall, Lehrer himself explained the more or less STEM, i.e. mathematical, reason for his ordering. It was to make the syllables fit together into a workable meter for the verses.
 
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  • #143
WWGD said:
A false positive:


Somehow found it as a hit but not quite, it seems from hearing it.


OK, I liked this a lot, (Sade's Smooth Operator), but admit maybe it should have been "smoothing operator".
 
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  • #144
mathwonk said:
OK, I liked this a lot, (Sade's Smooth Operator), but admit maybe it should have been "smoothing operator".
Well, it used to be called " C^oo map between Topological Vector Spaces ". But that wasn't too catchy of a name ;).
 
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  • #145
"A Glorious Dawn" with Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking. By John D. Boswell for Carl Sagan's video series Symphony of Science

 
  • #146
mathwonk said:
OK, I liked this a lot, (Sade's Smooth Operator), but admit maybe it should have been "smoothing operator".
Hah! Have had this in my head all day. I'm drawn into this thread and there it is! Some spooky synchronicity. :smile:
 
  • #147
gleem said:
"A Glorious Dawn" with Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking. By John D. Boswell for Carl Sagan's video series Symphony of Science


Epic! o0)

Some heavy use of vocoder if I'm not mistaken?
 

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