RE-UPLOAD: Sampling Firepits, Feeling Flamenco, Finding Tonás

⚠️ Note: This is a re-upload

The original episode was taken down due to a copyright strike on the theme tune — even though I wrote and produced it myself. While I sort that out, you’re treated to a gloriously bad placeholder version.

Also, I’ve trimmed down the Clip n Mix segment — I was clearly having too much fun with firepits last time, and it got a bit… indulgent. This one gets to the good stuff faster.

🔥 Can you make music from a campsite firepit?

And what is Tonás — the raw, unaccompanied flamenco style with roots in secrecy, survival, and soul?

In this episode, I launch a new segment called Clip n Mix, where I turn everyday sounds into music. This time? A campsite firepit. My son and I hit it with sticks, sample it using Ableton Note, and turn it into a crunchy little beat — which you’ll hear later in the episode.

Then we dive into one of flamenco’s most haunting styles: Tonás. My guest is the brilliant Josie Sinnadurai, a flamenco dancer based in Seville, who helps unpack the history, sound, and emotional depth of this unaccompanied vocal tradition.

👇 Full chapters and links below!

⏱️ Chapters

00:00 – Intro + why the theme tune sounds different

02:20 – Clip n Mix: sampling a firepit in Dorset

09:45 – What is Tonás?

10:20 – Interview with Josie Sinnadurai

34:50 – Why I didn’t make a Tonás track

35:20 – Turning firepit samples into music

49:15 – Sound, play, and curiosity

54:25 – Live shows + Patreon + sign-off

🔗 Links

🎬 Watch the Tonás video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7vpU5zLl-A

👣 Follow Josie Sinnadurai:

Website: https://www.josielaurelflamenco.com/

Instagram: @josie_sinna

📱 Try Ableton Note (free app):

iOS: https://apps.apple.com/app/ableton-note/id1611814758

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ableton.note

🎧 Download the firepit samples + Ableton Note session:

https://www.patreon.com/StevePrettyOnTheOriginofthePieces

🎟️ Live at Wilton’s Music Hall – 24th Jan 2026

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Kids show (2pm):

https://wiltons.org.uk/whats-on/steve-pretty-and-friends-on-the-origin-of-the-pieces-kids/

🌙 Evening show (7pm):

https://wiltons.org.uk/whats-on/steve-pretty-and-friends-on-the-origin-of-the-pieces-2/

💬 Got a weird sound you’d like me to turn into music?

Drop it in the comments or email [e-mail]

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