One selection that has been very popular in My Pie is 'background music' - many of you are used to playing some music while working, exercising or doing something to assist you in getting into a state of focus and mindful flow. Previously, I Pie's homepage has recommended several times a list of various types of music that are suitable as background music for work, and has received a lot of positive feedback. However, while collecting these lists, there is still an important question yet to be solved: where to find music suitable for work? Aside from passively accepting list recommendations, can I find avenues to discover this music on my own? In this post, I've sorted out the types of music that are suitable as background music, and with an understanding of these genres, you'll be able to find focused music that suits you no matter which music platforms you're using.
Why does music bring focus?
Before we get into the specific types of focus music, let's talk about why playing music while working can bring focus.
It all started with the concept of 'white noise', a term you're familiar with if you've been paying attention to focused music or meditation. White noise is a sound with a frequency range of 20 to 20,000 Hz and is evenly distributed. White noise is a gentle and stable sound to the human brain, and listening to it continuously creates a sound barrier in the brain, blocking out other sounds from interfering with the brain and allowing one to enter a state of concentration.
Conventional white noise does sound like noise (similar to the bared sound of a TV in a snowflake state), but not all white noise exists in the form of noise. Sounds such as streams, rain, waterfalls, waves, wind, etc. can all be white noise because they all fit the definition of "a uniform distribution of frequencies between 20 and 20,000 Hz". For this reason, many meditation apps include a lot of similar sound material to help users reduce distractions.
The most common function of meditation apps is to simulate various natural sounds and scenes part of the principle that music can help us stay focused also stems from this. The music that meets the requirements for focus music is often light or pure music, which has a soft, steady, soothing quality and is essentially white noise, which makes it suitable for use while working. I believe that those who have listened to music to enter the work state have such a feeling, when you listen to the song to enter the concentration state, for the ear whether the music is good, whether the generation is actually not too strong perception, rather, the real let you continue to focus on the music to isolate other outside sounds and noise.
Further, it has been argued that the very act of listening to music requires an investment of attention, and that this investment can draw in the unconscious parts of people's attention systems, providing the possibility of forming a sound block. In a previous member article, "Incomplete Report on Attention Use" I highlighted that human attention can be broadly divided into two parts: one is conscious-controlled, It is also the subjective attention, which is the main body of attention, and the second is the subconscious, unconscious attention, which is closely related to the body's perceptual system, and while your main conscious mind is engaged in something, the unconscious part may still be on and checking around like a radar detector in real time. Once disturbed by an outside source, the unconscious is stimulated and alerts the body, which in turn interrupts the engagement of the main conscious mind and causes you to become distracted. The presence of music just happens to draw the unconscious mind's attention, similar to turning global scanning radar into directed listening, which is where the sound barrier comes from.
With that in mind, we can start by addressing the question: is music with vocals suitable as background music for work? My answer is 'it depends'. If you want to listen to music with sung lyrics during work, there are two directions you can go - one is music you've already heard and are very familiar with, and the other is music you don't understand the language. The reasoning is also simple - the human brain is very sensitive to verbal and textual information, and deciphering textual information is a high priority within the brain. If a person is talking in your ear, it must be hard to resist the temptation to 'hear what he is saying'. When you hear an unfamiliar and understandable chant, your brain can't help but parse the meaning of the chant. Once the singing is over in your ears, your brain naturally follows you a hundred thousand miles away. Listening to music you've already heard can greatly alleviate this situation, as the brain is already familiar with the lyrics, so it doesn't need to go into an intense mode of interpreting them. However, it's important to resist the urge to "sing the chorus in your head," and I'm sure you've experienced the "forgetting your work at hand because the song is so good" situation.
Types of music to focus on
With that theoretical foundation in place, let's move on to the types of music that are appropriate for work. It is important to note that the following categories are not entirely based on musical genres, and are not rigorous enough in terms of the way they are classified alone. The main purpose is to help you quickly understand the scenes and genres that are suitable as focused music, so that you can easily draw a picture and build your own soundtrack system. In addition, each genre represents its most comprehensive and general concept, because each music style can be subdivided into too many styles, genres and definitions, and the main purpose of this article is not music science, so we will not dwell on these genre divisions, but only hope to use the genre as a clue to help you find more suitable background music to play at the office.
White Noise
When it comes to focused music, there's no getting around white noise, naturally. Strictly speaking, mere sound samples of forests, rain, oceans, etc. don't count as music, but that didn't stop me from putting it at the beginning of this list. There are plenty of these sounds built into well-known meditation apps like Tidal Wave and Calm, and a search for 'white noise' or 'white noise' on various music platforms will also yield plenty of playlists. The core focus of picking white noise is to choose the tone (aka type of sound) you like, for example, I'm not a big fan of rain (because I get sleepy) and prefer themes like the woods, the universe, or the lake.
Even if you don't use any apps, you can listen to "white noise" on music platforms or YouTube for 200 years!
Some recommendations
- This Sound is pure white noise in the sense that it's actually pretty good once you get used to hearing it. This channel is also one of the popular Relax Music themed channels on YouTube, with a huge library of tunes available for free.
- The Calm within its YouTube channel has uploaded numerous nature sound samples, such as this eight-hour-long rain sound, enough for a whole day. There's also plenty of free content such as guided meditations within The Calm channel, which is highly recommended to follow.
- Besides just sound samples, there are some sound producers who mix soothing music with sound samples to make the music more immersive, such as This Universe Theme. Also, I work at home sometimes with the TV on and play sound samples with HD graphics, which also creates an immersive effect.
Classical
Many people will make a direct connection between classical music and focus music, as the classical music we often hear is mostly non-singing and dominated by piano pieces and orchestral music, which is really good for background music. However, it is one-sided to simply assume that classical music is pure music or that classical music is suitable for concentration work, as the genre is also full of works with big ups and downs or sung lyrics (opera is actually a branch of classical music), which can interrupt your immersion and be counterproductive rather than vicarious. In my limited listening experience, it is safer to choose music from the following dimensions.
- For composers, choose Bach (Bach), Beethoven (Beethoven), Chopin (Chopin), Mozart (Mozart), Johann Strauss II (Johann Strauss Jr.), and other well-known giants, one reason being that you must have heard one or two of their works, consciously or unconsciously, and One of the reasons is that you have heard one or two of their works intentionally or unintentionally, and have some idea of their style, and you can generally judge whether you like to listen to them or not, and whether you want to listen to them at work; the second reason is that I am familiar with these composers' works (big smile), and I can basically guarantee that there are no pieces that are not suitable for playing at work.
- For the genre of works, preference is given to Sonata (Sonata), Concerto (concerto), and cautiously Symphony (Symphony). Sonata, Concerto, and other types of music are relatively lighter and flowing, and not as long. There is a lot of variation between movements, which may not be suitable for office use. If you don't know these styles, it's okay to search for music with keywords like "Sonata" and "Concerto" in the title. There are strict rules for naming classical music, so you can get an idea of what kind of music it is just by looking at the title.
Classical Music has a strictly regulated naming mechanism, the diagram means "Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125", if you want to understand If you want to understand the naming and numbering logic of classical music, you can click on this Q&A - many music platforms have something like "Classical Music for Focus 37i9dQZF1DXd5zUwdn6lPb?si=a12d0667227b4fcc)" playlists, which are generally not bad quality, or you can just listen to them if you don't want to spend time looking for music yourself. These are usually called "Focus Classical" or "Pure Classical", which can be found by combining the keywords mentioned above.
Also, classical music is an incredibly large and complex system, and the focus of this article is not on related science, so it only recommends works from the perspective of 'suitable as background music' in a one-sided way, and does not explain concepts such as 'sonata' and 'concerto'. If you want to learn about classical music in a musical way, it is perfectly fine to go beyond the above limitations and explore your favorite composers, performers and musical styles.
- RELATED READ: "Experience the beauty of classical music with these songs from a distant time and space
Baroque music Baroque
In terms of its development, Baroque music was a precursor to classical music. The main subject matter and audience for baroque music was the aristocracy, so its style was also typical of court music. Many baroque concerts make extensive use of instruments such as organs and large violins, which sound magnificent and magnificent, and can easily evoke your association with medieval Europe and can quickly get into the rhythm of the work.
People often associate the Baroque with ornate European courts, fine frescoes, detailed sculptures, grand churches, etc., all of which are indeed Baroque music is also a product of the Baroque era, and it's quite interesting to note that I don't know if you've heard of the term 'alpha brain waves'. In the field of brain development, there is a myth about alpha brain waves. The idea is that the human brain is most active when the alpha wave is active, and baroque music and classical music can quickly bring the human brain into the alpha wave active state, so listening to it often can enhance brain power. Therefore, there has been a boom in recommending and downloading alpha brainwave music on the Internet, and some companies have packaged and sold baroque music albums as "baroque alpha brainwave music". This is of course a misinterpretation of the working mechanism of the human brain. The principle that music can keep the human brain focused has already been discussed in detail in the previous article, but Baroque music and classical music happen to fit the qualities of focused music, so they have been exaggerated and mythologized by some netizens and businessmen as something mysterious.
The picture is about this thing, the picture is from "Penguin FM"
Some recommendations
- Various music streaming platforms have introductory compilations of Baroque music, often with names containing keywords like "Baroque Essential" (like this one on Spotify, "Baroque Classics" on Spotify, just search for the platform you're using.
- There are also tons of three- and five-hour-long compilations of baroque music on YouTube, which are very frugal to click on and play, and generally have good selections (baroque is court music, after all, so the average quality is naturally high). The one I've been listening to lately is this compilation.
- Also, baroque music, like classical music, has a vast history and stylistic divisions, and the two are extremely closely related (for example, the classical giant Bach wrote about baroque and brought it into the classical era), so it's hard to say in a few words. From an office listening point of view, there's no need to get bogged down in these details, just click on the playlist that sounds good to you on each platform and listen to it.
Jazz Jazz
When you think of jazz, images of black people, saxophones, coffee shops and vinyl jukeboxes are bound to come to many people's minds, and the first impression jazz brings to mind is often one of richly varied tunes and melodies that relax the body. In fact, jazz is probably the genre with the most genres and styles, the most complex branches and the most diverse variations of all music, and the jazz we often hear in movies or cafes is just the tip of the jazz system's iceberg.
A common chart of the development of American jazz, with intricate connections between different styles and artists, image from https://www .amazon.com/Highlights-Jazz-Story-Music-Poster/dp/B004G64352 However, that doesn't stop us from continuing to listen to the genre with prejudice and using it as background music for work. Especially considering that many people like to work in scenes like coffee shops, libraries, and park benches, jazz music can jog your memory of these scenes and have a better effect on increasing office engagement.
Some recommendations
- Listening to older jazz (such as music from the 1920s and 1930s) with an archaeological focus is not recommended, as the recordings were not nearly as good as they are today due to recording conditions, so it all sounds like an old movie soundtrack. Some of you may be looking for these jazz tracks with a roots or 'I only listen to grandparents' motive, but I'm not sure you can work with full commitment when listening to such music. Also, recordings of ancient jazz are not long enough to listen to a few tracks and then they're gone, and they don't lend themselves to scenarios like constant office listening. I've selected a clip from Wikipedia and put it here for you to try.
Audio
- Jazz music has been inherited and developed, so there is quite a lot of good modern jazz music. If you don't know any jazz players well, you can start by searching for keywords like "Jazz" or "Jazz Essential" on music platforms and listen to the works selected by the platform's music editors. These are the classics of the classics, and these playlists are aimed at the general public, so there are no weird or difficult tracks to play without disturbing the work.
- Each music platform has a "Jazz" category. Once you enter it, you can listen to the latest releases in order, and listen this way to discover your favorite players, and then follow the players' clues to discover more related albums.
- There are various relaxation or learning themed Jazz playlists on YouTube, and Musictag in the hyperlink hZA3FDTDHnQt9Qqsg) is a channel that focuses on Jazz-style themed music.
Techno
There are many of you who like electronic music or music with clear drums and rhythms, but a lot of electronic dance music (or "EDM") has a high BPM, which is great for dancing or exercising to, but a bit too intense to use as a background music for work. Techno, on the other hand, is a branch of electronic music that is often composed in 4/4 time, so most Techno music has a similar rhythmic pattern, with variations in tone and tune. With the 4/4 beat limit, techno music tends to have a BPM between 120 and 150, which is a good way to keep the brain focused without being overpowering.
Also, there are a lot of futuristic or sci-fi themes in techno, which makes the genre sound more new and modern.
Some recommendations
- A podcast I've previously recommended, [Techno Live Sets, this show doesn't talk about anything else, just Techno music. The show spends most of its time playing tracks, interspersed with occasional DJ transitions and creator intros, and could be listened to as a regularly updated Techno album. Also, their website has a large collection of DJs and albums that can be listened to at any time.
Techno Live Sets' website - Electronic music is one of the most popular genres on Bandcamp, which also has Techno section, where you can choose any album to try for free.
- Techno, as a sub-genre of electronic music, may not have separate divisions for each music platform, but there will certainly be something like "Best Techno 2022" as a playlist.
- The super-track library YouTube is rather less dominant in the inclusion of Techno than other genres, and some of the ones I've listened to are less than stellar. Instead, this Japanese-themed Trap Bass is pretty good, and I'm listening to it as I write this.
As with the genres mentioned above, there are endless subgenres of techno that can be explored, and Techno alone is divided into many genres. Besides Techno, there are other styles of electronic music to try. The human brain loves rhythm, and electronic music happens to be a rhythmic genre, so there is plenty of room to explore as focused music.
Ambient music Ambient
Ambient music was originally designed to be atmospheric (big smile), so there are a large number of scores under this genre that are almost entirely tailored to focus on the office. In a broad sense, mall soundtracks, cafe soundtracks, movie soundtracks, game soundtracks, etc. all count as ambient music (I also talk specifically about movie and game soundtracks below) and serve to reinforce the ambience of the environment.
The definition and recommendations of ambient music can be found in this article by My Pie, which explains it in great detail, just follow the albums and paths in the article. This popular channel Lofi Girl](https://www.youtube.com/c/LofiGirl).
- EXPANDED LISTEN: The eighth installment of The Lead Singer Is Dead podcast, "Rambling About Ambient Music," features Sweet Treats recommending ROOM40, a label that focuses on ambient music.
World Music
In general terms, the term world music refers to ethnic music from around the world. As music has evolved, many creators have combined ethnic elements with popular music, so world music also refers to other genres that contain ethnic components. In this section, I've grouped all the folk music I'm familiar with into world music for your reference.
Some recommendations
- Japanese Shakuhachi is silent and ethereal, perfect for listening to at night while writing or reading. The album I recently listened to was "Tajima Value Shi Shakuhachi No World The most recent album I listened to was "[The World of Shakuhachi]()", but a direct search for "Shakuhachi" or "Shakuhachi" on music streaming platforms will give you the appropriate results (but I personally think "Shakuhachi" works better).
- The Japanese Traditional Music Collection, which incorporates several classic Japanese instruments.
- Cold but similar to traditional Chinese music Korean traditional music.
- The music I've been listening to most recently while reading is Nordic Viking music (like this album), which is both majestic and powerful with Viking music is majestic, powerful, mystical, and occasionally accompanied by semantic chanting, making it a great immersion for listening at work and reading. Search 'Viking' on all platforms to get recommendations.
- Modern adaptations and interpretations but still bizarre traditional Egyptian music.
- and the very nice traditional Chinese music.
Games and movie soundtracks
Game and movie soundtracks are actually highly functional ambient music, and their purpose is to draw the player's or viewer's attention firmly into the plot of the story, guiding the user to be fully engaged. Because of this, soundtracks have also become the most beloved type of focused music for many of our friends. Given that most readers should be familiar with this type of music, I won't dwell on the principles of selection, I'll just recommend some of the soundtrack albums I listen to regularly.
Some recommendations
- The soundtrack for the game Kingdom Come: Deliverance has a medieval European atmosphere comes over you, reminiscent of a pleasant life in the countryside.
- The soundtrack for the game Assassin's Creed: Syndicate, the The soundtracks for each generation of Assassin's Creed are actually pretty good, but my favorite is the soundtrack for the Syndicate generation, where the Industrial Revolution era setting allows the music to incorporate a lot of classic elements while having the character and rhythm of a pop arrangement.
- Soundtrack for the movie Mission: Impossible - Fallout (Dishonored: Total Disintegration). Typical action movie soundtrack with a tight and heartfelt rhythm.
- The soundtrack of the film Interstellar, a classic work by composer Hans Zimmer The arrangement follows the grandeur of Hans Zimmer's music, and the vertigo in the track has a waking effect on the brain.
conclude
By this point in the article, I've recommended common, suitable genres of music to use as background music at work. I deliberately didn't write this article simply as "Don't know what to listen to at work? Just Bookmark These Ten Song Lists," because there are simply too many of these articles. Instead, as stated at the beginning of the article, what we need more of is a categorization and organization of so-called 'efficiency music'. The song list is fixed and there will always be a day when you get bored of listening to it, but if you start with the genre, try different music and find the kind you like, you have the chance to cite a few and get an infinite source of background music, which is what this article is trying to achieve.
Some of the playlists in the article only give a link to a platform, but by getting hold of the album name or keywords, you can also search for the associated results on your usual platforms. I would further encourage you to search more with the help of the keywords mentioned in the article, you will surely find the right playlist and album for you, and also experience the fun of discovery and searching.
Have fun listening and focus on your work.