This is day six of twenty-one days of posts between January 10th and January 30th of 2021. Hello again to those who read previous days, and hello to those of you who may have stumbled across this post “out of order”. You should go back and read from Day 1, for a few reasons. It explains why I am doing this. It is the first one, and I may make reference to something in it in this post or a later one. It also has a list with each day’s post (once they are available) and you can jump to whatever topic you are interested in. Thanks for reading!
Music has a deep, irrevocable influence over me. It can encourage me, excite me, anger me, and even calm me. I have different types of calming music, chosen based on what type of music I want to listen to at that time. If I don’t want to hear voices, I pick instrumental music. If voices are OK, then some type of vocal music. To really bliss out on vocal music, I tend to pick pieces that are not in English. Latin, French, even Russian all work to sooth me. Not having to process the vocal sounds, while still hearing their exquisite tones is an amazing balm.
Instrumental calming music can range from the minimalist Echo Broke Alone, to more complex works like Moby’s Long Ambients, to the ephemeral collaboration of Silvercord and Altus. Most of these pieces are long, gentle trips that thoroughly soothe, calm, and blunt the edge of consciousness. In the more “classical” realm, it is easier to mention composers and pieces, either by name or opus. Erik Satie’s piano music such as his Trois Gymnopédies are wonderfully soothing. Samuel Barber’s Adagio For Strings and Gabriel Fauré’s Pavane, Opus 50 are also excellent soothing pieces.
Soothing vocal music (in English) that I like includes an array of different genres, from contemporary Christian to folk, to dream pop/shoe-gazer, to folk to alternative. Artists in this category include Julianna Barwick, Sarah McLachlan, The Sundays, Hillsong, Brandi Carlisle, James Taylor, The Cure, Trespassers William, Natalie Merchant, and Sarah Jarosz. Not all tracks by these artists are appropriate as calming music, but they all have at least a couple.
The final category, vocal music not in English, is mostly composed of “classical” music, but there are some outliers, such as the music of Sigur Rós, Deep Forest, and the various incarnations of Gregorian chant in juxtaposition to deep electronic beats and loops, like Enigma and Delerium. As before, it is easier to point out particular classical pieces by name or opus and composer, so I’ll point out some works that way. First is Rachmaninoff’s Vespers, Opus 37. Yes, it is in Russian. Yes, it is immensely soothing, at least some movements are. The same goes for the Gabriel Fauré and Maurice Duruflé requiems, opuses 48 and 9, respectively. Some movements in each one are bombastic, but most are fairly sedate, but with underlying gravity. The Fauré is the calmer of the two overall. Both are well worth listening to, even if they are in Latin, and even if they are “for the dead”.
A more modern entry for this category would be Henryk Gorecki’s Symphony No. 3, Opus 36, especially the second movement. Each of the three movements has vocal texts, in Polish, that are sung along with the captivating music. But it is the music that grabs you first and the vocals simply add color and definition. The symphony is at times uplifting, at times soothing, and at other times forbiddingly, achingly, sad. It is challenging, not only for its fifty-three minute runtime, but for the rich, lingering, modern chords and musical constructs. It is not something you hear everyday and is not everyone’s “cup of tea”, but you should hear it at least once in your life. It would be an hour well spent.
So, how do we turn this conversation about calming music into a conversation about faith? The King Jehoshaphat sent a choir out in front of his armies during one of his most dangerous battles. 2 Chronicles 20:21 tells us:
When he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who sang to the Lord and those who praised Him in holy attire, as they went out before the army…
His enemies, three armies in total, were routed that day. Music, especially music produced in praise to the Lord, is mighty. This prompts me to pray this:
Lord, help me to remember that You are worthy of praise and I should praise You every single day.
Thanks for reading!
Featured Image: Photo by Thomas Rey on Unsplash