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Ask HN: best music background to work?
14 points by creonik on Jan 13, 2013 | hide | past | favorite | 13 comments
For example, I am finding I prefer not to listen to songs I know since I would try to follow the lyrics and that would take part of my brain and distract me.What's your favourite music when you code,design or work in general?



Like many people, if I'm thinking and designing I prefer to have no music. If I'm doing these things in a noisy environment I may listen to some rain recordings such as [1].

When I'm coding I mainly listen to classical music. The problem is that I need to listen to things I know very well or I'll get distracted, so I end up listening to the same compositions over and over again, to the annoyment of my wife ;-)

These days the compositions I list the most while coding are:

- Beethoven String Quartets, for instance [2] (I really like the fugato at 5:00 ;-)

- Mahler Symphonies, for example [3]

- Ravel music

- Some Monteverdi madrigals [4]

I like to use headphones, either a Sennheiser PX 200 [5] or a Sennheiser HD-280 PRO [6].

[1] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvRv-243Cmk

[2] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55PIXCQgEfE

[3] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkoeH5BtLyQ

[4] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkDyNzPUQbo

[5] http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-PX-200-II-Headphones/dp/B00...

[6] http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-HD-280-Pro-Headphones/dp/B0...


Thanks.I am switching to classical music and works much better. Right now I am listening to Yo-Yo Ma and Ennio Morricone playing Moses and Marco Polo Theme. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssoQbusZ7os. It's beautiful (when not interrupted by Spotify ads!)


I've tried white noise, Naturespace, Kap Slap mixes, Pop mixes, Gregorian, etc.

I've found that I am pretty productive in a cafe these days, so I started listening to tracks of cafe background noise when I work from home recently, such as "People Talking in Coffee Shop" by Finnolia Productions [1].

Might write more about this if it works well enough.

[1] iTunes affiliate link: http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=dE0y3GuqVK4&...


I usually listen to one of the Music for Programming[1] mixes, and when I'm in the mood for more ambient music I listen to Brian Eno.

[1] http://musicforprogramming.net/


I did not it. Thanks for the link.


Depends on your work. For instance, if you have a good software design a web application, you can code it with heavy metal music because listing metal music with programming is improving the velocity of coding.


You are right. As I listen to a lot of classical music, I realize I am thinking better but also slowing down too much. Thanks


Best site I could find was created by a fellow HN follower :)

http://www.getworkdonemusic.com/#

I listen to it everyday and never get bored :)


I usually listen to slow tempo piano jazz or rainymood.com


There are a couple threads on this already.

turntable.fm's "Ambient Chillout & Trip Hop" room is usually quite good.


I usually just go on 8tracks and listen to the first 'coding' or 'programming' playlist that shows up.


Depends on the mood I'm in. From slow piano/classic to techno.


soma.fm - Mission Control, Space station or Drone Zone

di.fm - Chillout, Minimal or Ambient

bassdrive.com (liquid dnb)




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