Please list your favorites for said purpose.
Some of my favorites include …
Delerium - Karma
Dead Can Dance - Toward the Within
Orbital - Orbital II
Loreena McKennitt - Book of Secrets
The first movement of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata. On repeat. Forever.
I have an MP3 of a thunderstorm with a panpipe being played softly in the background that’s 45 minutes long and I loop endlessly when I need some chill time or time to focus on writing.
I also like to flip on one of the iTunes Electronica or Classical stations. AfterhoursDJs.org’s stream is usually the one I listen to.
None; I only listen to music when I want to be stimulated. “Relaxing” music usually just irritates me.
Gregorian Chants. As a bonus, if you sing them in minor and have organ in the background it sound evil.
Bach
Air in G
First I should say that to me, relaxing is sitting in a lawn chair in the backyard with a cooler of beer, or sitting in the hot tub with a cooler of beer nearby.
The music? Bob Marley, all the way!
I actually hafve a few CDs – Bach for Relaxation, Beethoven for Relaxation, and Mozart for Relaxation – that I find very, ah, relaxing. The Beethoven is my fave, it does include Moonlight Sonata, Fur Elise, slow movement from 6th Symphony, etc.
Wow… I have to agree with Dead Can Dance, and Loreena McKennitt , also, the
Cocteau Twins, and the sountrack to " The last Temptation of Christ".
Oh, and " A gift of love- deepak & friends…rumi"
Aphex Twin - Selected Ambient Works II
Boards of Canada - Geogaddi
Autechre - Incunabula
Twerk - Living Vicariously Through Burnt Bread
Beefcake - Drei
Ulver - Silence Teaches You to Sing
Astrobotnia
Cujo - Adventures in Foam
The Boredoms - Vision, Creation, Newsun
o9 - Church of the Ghetto PC
My Bloody Valentine - Loveless
Fennesz - Endless Summer
Four Tet - Rounds
Múm - Finally We Are No One
Savath and Savalas - Apropa’t
Bach’s Gymnopédies
Pachelbel Ocean - Canon in D, Water Music, Air in G with the sound of the ocean. Aaahhh…
The Planet Sleeps - Lullabies from around the world.
Puccini and Verdi
Tomaso Giovanni Albinoni - specifically, Adagio, for violin, strings & organ in G minor (slays me peacefully).
Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata.
Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings Op11 (a bit weepy but soooo beautiful).
Loreena McKennitt
Enya, Only Time (much other Enya, but she got a bit overplayed)
I never thought I’d say this, but my current favorite relaxation music is IZ, otherwise known as Israel Kamakawiwo’ole. My favorite of his CD’s is, Facing Future. My mom plays it continuously and I swore I’d never like it, but I’m hooked.
Anything by The Smiths. I love waking up to the Smiths in the morning, it makes me feel so relaxed and set up for the day.
Slowdive: anything, but Pygmalion is really good for this.
Verve: A Storm In Heaven
Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works, volumes I and II
Lush: Gala and Spooky
House Of Love: the second self-titled album, and then some
Spiritualized, Red House Painters, Mazzy Star, Cocteau Twins, This Mortal Coil, Mojave 3. Some Massive Attack, Pink Floyd, Mogwai, My Bloody Valentine, Beta Band.
I had a good-sized playlist of this kind of stuff going for a while, but unfortunately lost it. I think I need to get around to rebuilding it…
I think the Grateful Dead have really relaxing music. Also pretty much anything by Kenney Chesney.
George Winston’s December Especially the Variations On The Kanon By Pachelbel
Lately a couple of oldies that I had forgotten about:
Spirit Farther Along
The Blue Nile Hats
I will second ‘Selected Ambient Works’ by Aphex Twin and also add:
‘Eureka’ - Jim ‘O’ Rourke
‘Music Has The Right to Children’ - Boards of Canada
‘Moon Safari’ - Air
‘The K & D Sessions’ - Kruder and Dorfmeister
‘Frank’ - Amy Winehouse
‘Decks EFX and 909’ - Richie Hawtin
Many, many more but these are my long term choices.