The Power of Music Thinking

Christof Zürn
The Power of Music Thinking

Christof Zürn is on a mission to inspire you with analogies from the music world. His The Power of Music Thinking podcast features conversations with remarkable people that are also musicians, such as the CEO of a digital platform that is also the conductor of a Big Band or a Global Design Director of a well-known design firm playing guitar and teaching at a top-notch music and art school. A Customer Success Manager of a big tech company that was the guitarist of a well know pop band, a University Professor for Organisational and Community Psychology finding success patterns and playing the bass, and the Director of a famous Design and Art school that was a worldwide performing musician and conductor of classical music. Every episode will inspire you through personal stories in business, society and music. With his decades of experience in branding and online agencies, management consulting and online music platforms, Christof’s questions come from a place of curiosity and passion for meaningful co-creation, creative strategy and sustainable innovation in the context of the planet, people, and profit. If you love society and culture, music and technology, documentaries, and business podcasts, take a second to follow The Power of Music Thinking. Listeners of The Power of Music Thinking podcast will learn from some of the most exciting people in the world with practical tips and inspiring stories that will inspire your personal and business life. Listen to The Power of Music Thinking here: https://musicthinking.com/podcast Like this show? Please leave us a review -- even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally! Thank you for your support; it helps the show!

  1. AUG 3

    Sound Walk in the Summer with Christof Zürn

    Today is a special episode of the podcast, not just because of the 50th episode anniversary but because there will be no guests today. Instead, you'll be immersed in a unique sound walk experience, a journey of sound I recorded in July in Italy. This is not just a regular episode; it's a sonic adventure.  Open your mind and listening brain because, as we learned in the last episode with Professor Nina Kraus, you can only hear what you know.  But now let's get on our trip or, better yet, the sound walk of the summer. Every two years, my wife and I, visit the Art Biennale of Venice. It's not just a visit, it's a learning experience, an inspiration, a ritual about creativity in the broadest sense. It's about un-learning, re-learning, and encountering new things that make you rethink. And this time, I brought my recording device with me on a sound walk through the Biennale of Venice.  Be my guest while I was walking with my ears and microphone open on this unique sound walk. Show Notes David Rothenberg website and books: http://www.davidrothenberg.net/  Biennale Arte Venice website: https://www.labiennale.org/en/art/2024   Italian Pavillion, Duo Qui/Two here: https://www.duequi-tohear.it/project  More on Deep Listening and Pauline Oliveros:https://musicthinking.com/deep-listening-with-sharon-stewart/   Show Support Please choose one or more of the ‘three ways to support the show’: Subscribe to the podcast. Leave us a review — even one sentence helps! I appreciate your support; it helps the show! Tell your friends about the podcast and musicthinking.com Buy the book The Power of Music Thinking and the Jam Cards at a 20% discount using musicthinking20 at the check-out of the BIS Publishers website only.​​

    52 min
  2. JUN 23

    A Love Letter to Sound with Nina Kraus

    We don't just hear; we engage with sounds. Our hearing is always on, and we can't close our ears the way we close our eyes, yet we can ignore unimportant sounds. Making sense of sound is one of the most challenging jobs we ask our brains to do. But how does this work? Today, we speak with Dr. Nina Kraus, scientist, inventor, book author, Professor of Neurobiology at Northwestern University, and Director of BrainVolts.  Nina's research reveals that our daily lives, filled with sound, play a significant role in shaping how our brain interprets the sounds we hear. This influence can be both positive, as seen in musicians and bilinguals, and negative, as in the case of concussion, hearing loss, and language disorders. Sound, therefore, leaves a profound imprint on our identities. Nina talks about the partnership of sound and the brain and how sound processing drives many of the brain's core functions.  To give you an idea of our conversation, there is a short, surprising sound example in the intro of the episode that will make you wonder!  Because we only hear what we know, we have to hear and listen a lot to better understand our world and ourselves. So, relax and join our conversation about exploring sound and listening! Or how Nina also talks about her work and book: It is a love letter to sound.   Show Notes Brainvolts website www.brainvolts.northwestern.edu  Book Of Sound Mind: https://brainvolts.northwestern.edu/of-sound-mind/  Show support Please choose one or more of the ‘three ways to support the show’: Subscribe to the podcast. Leave us a review — even one sentence helps!  Tell your friends about the podcast and musicthinking.com Buy the book The Power of Music Thinking and the Jam Cards at a 20% discount using musicthinking20 at the check-out of the BIS Publishers website only.​​

    51 min
  3. MAY 20

    Sound Buildings with Ron van Leeuwen

    Today, we speak with Ron van Leeuwen, who straddles two creative worlds. By day, he is an architect and urban designer, shaping physical spaces. By night, he transforms his creative energy into music, composing pieces that the 55-piece Metropole Orkest has recorded. His newest composition, Architones, is also available on Spotify.We discuss the relations and differences between working in these two fields, the metamorphoses of buildings and music, and the challenges of delivering a feasible building.During our discussion, Ron generously shares his compositional insights and the creative process behind his homage to the Vredespalais (Peace Palace) in The Hague. He reveals how he began with a waltz rhythm, a choice that adds a unique musical dimension to the architectural masterpiece. Show Notes Connect with Ron on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ron-van-leeuwen-65b30723/  Architones website: https://architones.com/  Architones on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/2VJ4ZJhDqlXNwKnuQjoPFw?si=2DW2gQ9_Q66iTvLEBvJNSw  Kokon: Architecture & Urbanism: https://www.kokon.nl/en    Show support Please choose one or more of the ‘three ways to support the show’: Subscribe to the podcast. Leave us a review — even one sentence helps! I appreciate your support; it helps the show! Tell your friends about the podcast and musicthinking.com Buy the book The Power of Music Thinking and the Jam Cards at a 20% discount using musicthinking20 at the check-out of the BIS Publishers website only.​​

    55 min
  4. APR 22

    The Art of Freedom with Jennifer Roig-Francoli

    How are your habits getting in the way of being more creative? How does self-observation make you a better performer? And how can touching from a distance help you with performance problems? Today, we speak with Jennifer Roig-Francoli - violinist, healer, coach, author and creator of The Art of Freedom Method for Conscious Living and Masterful Artistry. We discuss methods like the Alexander technique, the Suzuki method, the mother-tongue method, NLP (Neurolinguistic Programming) and how they benefit everyone who has to rehearse and perform, whether in music or business. And Jennifer shares her experiences as a solo artist, the challenges of keeping up great performances, and insights from her #1 Amazon bestseller, Make Great Music with Ease! Where She provides deep insights and lasting solutions to the challenges musicians face, including pain, performance nerves, and emotional stress.   Show Notes Connect with Jennifer: www.ArtofFreedom.me Youtube channel: www.youtube.com/@JenniferRoigFrancoli  Her #1 Amazon book: www.amazon.com/dp/B0CN3SX8DK  Show support Please choose one or more of the ‘three ways to support the show’: Subscribe to the podcast. Leave us a review — even one sentence helps! I appreciate your support; it helps the show! Tell your friends about the podcast and musicthinking.com Buy the book The Power of Music Thinking and the Jam Cards at a 20% discount using musicthinking20 at the check-out of the BIS Publishers website only.

    47 min
  5. MAR 24

    Music and Astrophysics with Dr Mariana Wagner

    Dr. Mariana Wagner, an astrophysicist, songwriter, podcaster, and composer of immersive live shows about sound and space.  We learn about her journey that led her from studying oceanography, working as a songwriter for German Schlager stars and becoming a doctor of astrophysics.   Mariana also brought some sound examples to the show. We hear a conversation between Saturn and one of its moons, an excerpt from the sound files on the famous golden record that has accompanied the Voyager since 1977, and the grooving sound of moving plasma from the sun.  Show Notes Connect with Mariana on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-mariana-wagner-2a241a75/  Podcast (mostly German speaking): https://marianawagner.de/podcast/ Introduction to the sound and space live shows: https://marianawagner.de/show/#_info   Golden record and the untold story how Chakrulo ended up in space:  https://georgianjournal.ge/discover-georgia/28321-the-untold-story-of-how-chakrulo-ended-up-in-space.html    Show support Please choose one or more of the ‘three ways to support the show’: Subscribe to the podcast. Leave us a review — even one sentence helps! I appreciate your support; it helps the show! Tell your friends about the podcast and musicthinking.com Buy the book The Power of Music Thinking and the Jam Cards at a 20% discount using musicthinking20 at the check-out of the BIS Publishers website only. The Power of Music Thinking is brought to you by CREATIVE COMPANION specialised in facilitating leaders, teams and organisations in customer experience, change and innovation.

    38 min
  6. FEB 27

    Better English with Jam Cards and Anita Prestidge

    How cool is this? You develop a multisensory product to let people experience your ideas about music thinking and then someone comes along and uses your product for something completely different. So today, we speak with Anita Prestidge, an English trainer with experience in theatre, directing, and education. When Anita picked up the cards, she had another idea of what to do with these cards and developed her own unique method. So, if you want to speak better English while using the Jam Cards, connect with Anita online. Show Notes Connect with Anita on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anita-prestidge/  A Video Introduction by Anita Prestidge for potential students: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHly19lnmCo  Get the Jam Cards: https://musicthinking.com/jam-cards/  Behind the Cards stories: https://musicthinking.com/?s=behind+the+cards   Show support Please choose one or more of the ‘three ways to support the show’! Subscribe to the podcast. Leave us a review — even one sentence helps! I appreciate your support; it helps the show! Tell your friends about the podcast and musicthinking.com Buy the book The Power of Music Thinking and the Jam Cards at a 20% discount using musicthinking20 at the check-out of the BIS Publishers website only. The Power of Music Thinking is brought to you by CREATIVE COMPANION specialised in facilitating leaders, teams and organisations in customer experience, change and innovation.

    39 min

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

Christof Zürn is on a mission to inspire you with analogies from the music world. His The Power of Music Thinking podcast features conversations with remarkable people that are also musicians, such as the CEO of a digital platform that is also the conductor of a Big Band or a Global Design Director of a well-known design firm playing guitar and teaching at a top-notch music and art school. A Customer Success Manager of a big tech company that was the guitarist of a well know pop band, a University Professor for Organisational and Community Psychology finding success patterns and playing the bass, and the Director of a famous Design and Art school that was a worldwide performing musician and conductor of classical music. Every episode will inspire you through personal stories in business, society and music. With his decades of experience in branding and online agencies, management consulting and online music platforms, Christof’s questions come from a place of curiosity and passion for meaningful co-creation, creative strategy and sustainable innovation in the context of the planet, people, and profit. If you love society and culture, music and technology, documentaries, and business podcasts, take a second to follow The Power of Music Thinking. Listeners of The Power of Music Thinking podcast will learn from some of the most exciting people in the world with practical tips and inspiring stories that will inspire your personal and business life. Listen to The Power of Music Thinking here: https://musicthinking.com/podcast Like this show? Please leave us a review -- even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally! Thank you for your support; it helps the show!

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