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Lo-Fi Orchestra Plays Virtuosic, Electronic "The Planets"

Overhead shot of a tangle of wires, LEDs, motherboards, synthesizers, and other electronic music equipment
Simple DIY Electro Music Projects
/
YouTube
Screenshot of "Lo-Fi Orchestra - Mars from The Planets"

Beeps, boops, and other electronic sounds transform a Holst masterpiece, Lang Lang plays piano with an orange, and more, in this week's roundup!

1. What makes a pop song a hit? New research suggests that the element of surprise — harmonically, anyway — might have something to do with it.

2. 14 years and over a million views later, pianist Lang Lang's unusual talent still impresses:

3. How do you fix a broken accordion? Well, you probably don't — unless you're one of a very small group of specialists scattered around the world. The Boston Globe's A.Z. Madonna spoke with a few of them about their unusual craft.

4. For the past year, the creator of the website "Simple DIY Electronic Music Projects," who goes by "Kevin," has been recording and posting videos of his Lo-Fi Orchestra playing movements from Gustav Holst's The Planets. Here's the first video in the series:

Curious about the Lo-Fi Orchestra? Here's an introduction: