This was our first playlist together and there’s so much about it that I wanted to talk about in terms of how making a musicto collaborative playlist can work.
First off it was a “Trade Tracks” list – where one person adds a track, the other listens to it and responds with a track that they think should go next. I think this is what makes musicto playlists so different from algorithmically derived lists from the big streaming platforms – the connections that humans can make are just different than a machine running recommendation engines.
I can’t tell you why I thought Bob Marley’s War would be the perfect track to follow O.A.R.’s That Was A Crazy Game of Poker – but I’m pretty sure the algorithm wouldn’t have made that choice.
And that’s it isn’t it – if you’re looking for something similar but different to what you already like then yeah – Spotify’s Discover Weekly and Release Radar are great – but if you want to break out of a particular genre silo – well – we got you.
Also – Spotify’s playlists are automatically generated and served up every week – coming into existence almost instantly as soon as the script is run – they’re also ephemeral in that – they change every week.
This playlist took 8 months to make – purely driven by the available bandwidth each curator had to listen to the previous track and find a track that they loved that made sense to them. Every track is considered and comes with more context than we can share.
We hope you enjoy the journey!
Playlist Image Kid reading: Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
This playlist is part of The Human Collective. Each week we take a prompt and create a playlist and accompanying articles. Learn more about The Human Collective here.
About the Curators
Ariana Pizzuto
Ariana | Playlist Curator | Storyteller | Music Explorer
I love a good theme. I put my heart, soul, and emotions into every playlist, building stories through music. To me, a playlist isn’t just a collection of songs, it’s a feeling, a world, an experience. I want listeners to not only hear the music; but feel it, whether it’s the deepest of emotions or the story I’m trying to tell.
My taste? Eclectic as can be. No genre is off limits, and my process varies with each playlist. Some come together naturally, others are inspired by visuals, a topic I am really into, or a single moment in time. Nostalgia plays a huge role in my selections, along with deep storytelling and meaning.
If you’re looking for playlists that go beyond the algorithm, that take you somewhere, this is the place. Hit play and go on a musical adventure.
Andrew
The first visual memory I have is that of the white upright piano in Singapore, Hell and the Dark Forces lived at the bottom, Heaven and the Angels at the top, they would play battles through my fingers and I was hooked.
As a psychology graduate I studied how sound affects human performance.
As a musician I compose instrumental music that stimulates your brain but doesn't mess with your language centers, leaving you free to write creatively without distraction.
As a curator I research how music can improve your life and create flow - I can tell you what music to listen to when studying for a test and why listening to sad music can make you feel better.
As a creator / contributor at musicto I believe that music can make the world better.
What I'm doing now