Okay, so we’re in quarantine, whether voluntary or otherwise, we’re social distancing, and we’re getting ready to rock our online classes. Every individual has their own ways they are most productive studying and getting. It. Done. Depending on what type of task I am doing, I often find music helpful to work to. I find myself plugging in for a jam session when I tackle mathematics or chemistry. Or when I’m cleaning, working out, doing arts and crafts, cooking, you name it. However, when I’m writing or reading, I find it is best I listen to music without words or with minimal words. Perhaps I’m crazy, or perhaps others are the same way. Or perhaps, I spent just a bit too much time in high school doing anything related to instruments and band. Probably some combination of all of these!
Have you ever wanted to try out listening to new types of music, but not been sure where to start? The fact of the matter is, there is still a place for genres like classical, jazz, choral, acapella, etc. in the United States where pop, rap, indie, and rock rule. Once we learn a little bit about listening to different types of music, and have a leveled appreciation for it, we can begin to incorporate it into our lives to study to, work to, dance to, you name it.
I think the current state we are in can give individuals who are self-quarantining with some extra time on their hands a valuable window for musical discovery. I believe that music is an incredible inner key to understanding the soul of the human condition, so if I can unlock a little bit of that while I do yet another stoichiometry problem, I’m all in. Here are some suggestions for new music to try out for studying or new ways to listen in:
1. You may actually like classical music more than you know! Learn to listen to it first, then you’ll love it for studying.
Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, Schubert, Tchaikovsky, Chopin, all those old guys. What a drag, right? I have a theory that classical music is like art and poetry. Going to an art museum with an art major friend, or taking a tour with a guide brings it to life in a whole new way when someone is pointing out aspects of the art to notice. Poetry and literature become even more incredible when you read them through different lenses, looking out for patterns and literary elements. Music, especially orchestral music, is the same way. You don’t need to rack your brain back to your four month stint playing clarinet in the fifth grade, and you don’t need to have a box seat at the symphony to learn to listen to classical music. Start off listening for dynamics (how loud or soft the part is). Notice natural builds in the piece. Then, see if you can listen in to only one instrument. Listen for (usually) the main melody in the flutes (highest pitches). Then hone in on the tubas and the baritones carrying the lowest pitch sounds. Try to notice the tempo (the speed) of the music; does it speed up or slow down within the piece? All of these questions may seem quite basic, but I guarantee if you take an extra minute or two, this will enhance your listening and you will enjoy the music more! But what about when you’re studying and paying attention to your homework? Right.
Maria’s picks: Mozart Symphony No. 41, and for a more modern take, try out anything by John Mackey. Frozen Cathedral by John Mackey if you want to travel to be utterly amazed.
2. Percussion Ensemble Pieces
Well, I am a bit biased. My main instruments are from the percussion family: all the fun ones you get to play with by hitting or touching them. Maybe Mozart puts you to sleep. Juggling jazz in your mind gets to be too much. I’m here to put you on percussion ensemble pieces. Not only do these pieces tend to be fun, easy to find on streaming platforms and YouTube, and have a wide variety of vibes (upbeat and intense, slow and peaceful, etc.), but you’ll learn a lot just by listening in to all the instruments featured. Every percussion ensemble will be set up different based on the instrumentation needed for the piece. You can usually expect the melody to be handled by mallet percussion instruments like the marimba (the big xylophone looking one!), the vibraphone (shiny metal xylophone), an actual xylophone, orchestra bells, a piano or synthesizer, you name it. If when you hear percussion, you think drums, you are spot on. In an ensemble piece, you may have a drum set, a concert snare and/or bass drum, lots of types of hand drums, or the ginormous pitched timpani drums. Looking for a little extra spice? Expect to hear cymbals layered on top of the melody. Finally, you will likely hear any number of auxiliary instruments, such as shakers, maracas, windchimes, a gong, rainsticks, tambourines, goat toenails, the flexatone and the vibraslap, you name it.
Maria’s picks: Catching Shadows Percussion Sextet, anything by Clocks in Motion, and any ensemble (or solo!) pieces by Michael Burritt, Ivan Trevino, Escape 10 Duo, (playing a marimba in heels? Sis did that), and Mark Ford.
3. Jazz is still the cat’s pajamas…and an incredibly cool genre in terms of culture and history.
It’s the ‘20s again, and since we are in the midst of a pandemic and the stock market crashing, we may as well embrace the new ‘20s by ringing in the musical genre that swept up the old ‘20s: jazz. Jazz is an extremely complicated musical genre because it really contains several subgenres: big band, swing, smooth, ragtime, etc. The development of jazz was in the works even before the 1920s and lasted well into the middle half of the century. Jazz, like classical, can feel very intimidating, and especially looooooong if you dive right in. Solos that stretch for what feels like 30 years? With the right soloist, it won’t feel that way. I adore using jazz as study music, and I especially like big band numbers when I am feeling unmotivated for the task ahead. The main thing to listen for in jazz is the motifs. Most often, there is the recurring melodic line that you will hear at the beginning of the piece, and then it will be played off of, syncopated, subdivided, key-changed, turned in to call and response, essentially dug in to the ground for the rest of the piece. Think of Monet’s haystack paintings. That’s a jazz piece with the main line.
Maria’s picks: An all time fave is “Lester Leaps In” by Count Basie’s Kansas City Seven. Check out (of course) Miles Davis, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Ella Fitzgerald, etc. For a modern, more smooth route, check out “Point No Point” by Dan Gailey, and his whole album, “What Did You Dream?”
4. World. Music. Period.
I’m certainly no expert on the amazing amount of genres of music across the entire globe. Yet I do find myself always curious to explore and admire musical genres I wouldn’t hear on my local radio stations: sometimes, a fun idea is to just pick a country or region, and read up on some of the genres that are popular in that area. Especially for studying, I find often that listening to an entirely new genre (with or without lyrics, including a language which I do not know) keeps my mind engaged in whatever I am working on, while jamming out to the music, of course. So pick up some afrocuban beat vibes, relish in reggaeton, mix it up with makossa, hang loose with Hindustani classical music, imagine the Italian opera, and of course, kick back with some K-pop.
Maria’s picks: Really needs its own article! But check out this site for lists of new genres to try out.
Happy listening!