# Classical music for doing... stuff



## Aksel (Dec 3, 2010)

Hi, guys.

So, a few months ago, I had a facebook conversation thing with a few friends of mine about classical music that's suitable for accompanying certain activities. Among the things we found out were that Chopin, Wagner overtures and Mahler all are suitable for doing physics, Vivaldi cantatas and English madrigals are great for chemistry and Beethoven's wonderful for baking, especially with yeast.
I'll post all of the recommendations at a later time. I just have to translate them first.

Does anyone else have any recommendations for this kind of thing? Do post them below.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

Aksel said:


> .
> 
> Does anyone else have any recommendations for this kind of thing? Do post them below.


Roy Harris and Phillip Glass are good for driving through the desert.


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## Aramis (Mar 1, 2009)

Bellini is good for shooting your wife after you catch her with her lover.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

Aramis said:


> Bellini is good for shooting your wife after you catch her with her lover.


:lol: Also Gesualdo.


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## Aksel (Dec 3, 2010)

Oh, you people, you ...
You make me laugh.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

I walk to work & back & listen to opera on my mp3 player. My favourite 'marching music' is Verdi, especially the 'blood & guts' patriotic ones like Attila, La battaglia di Legnano & Giovanna d'Arco.



> Beethoven's wonderful for baking, especially with yeast


I am intrigued by this. :lol: Hope the friend wasn't baking bread as you need to thump the dough a few times each time the yeast makes it rise. I suppose it depends on the Beethoven.


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## Aksel (Dec 3, 2010)

Actually, it was me. And I don't remember quite what piece it was, but I think it was either the 5th or 9th symphony. And I was making cinnamon rolls, I think. And the Beethoven worked wonders.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Aksel said:


> Actually, it was me. And I don't remember quite what piece it was, but I think it was either the 5th or 9th symphony. And I was making cinnamon rolls, I think. And the Beethoven worked wonders.


Sounds delicious.


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## Aksel (Dec 3, 2010)

I do think it was. But it is some time ago.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

Aksel said:


> Actually, it was me. And I don't remember quite what piece it was, but I think it was either the 5th or 9th symphony. And I was making cinnamon rolls, I think. And the Beethoven worked wonders.


So that's why mine never turn out! Cursed Schoenberg; he makes everything fall flat.


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## Weston (Jul 11, 2008)

I discovered that opera at really high volumes on Sunday mornings is good for persuading your neighbors stop to using sub-woofer speakers while parked in their driveways late at night. Bagpipe music is also effective.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

Weston said:


> I discovered that opera at really high volumes on Sunday mornings is good for persuading your neighbors stop to using sub-woofer speakers while parked in their driveways late at night. Bagpipe music is also effective.


I understand that the authorities in London ridded themselves of young deviants from congregating around subway stations by piping through their speakers the music of Frederick Delius.

There's a case of using classical music to _keep_ people from doing stuff.


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

Many moons ago, I used to listen to Bach's _Well Tempered Klavier_ (on harpsichord, because that's the only recording I had!) whilst doing spring cleaning on a weekend. It kind of made the whole experience a bit therapeutic, a bit less of a chore. It's the type of music you can tune in & out of without losing the thread of the musical argument too much, imo...


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## Huilunsoittaja (Apr 6, 2010)

Pretty much all classical music is good for doing homework/studying. As long as it's not too entertaining, where you get overly distracted.

Prokofiev is good for drowning out other music.


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## dandylion (Dec 9, 2010)

Weston. I actually did use bagpipe music one Sunday morning after a miserable night of rap. I turned it up as loud as I could.


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## Chris (Jun 1, 2010)

Manxfeeder said:


> I understand that the authorities in London ridded themselves of young deviants from congregating around subway stations by piping through their speakers the music of Frederick Delius.


I heard a story on these lines which I hope is true. There was a commercial office block with a paved courtyard which attracted every skateboarder for miles around. The management hit on the idea of playing classical music to drive them away. For this purpose they selected Schubert's Grand Duo Sonata in C, D812. They played the record at high volume through the speakers but the kids didn't budge. One of the managers then opened a window and shouted 'Are you lot going to clear off?' to which one of the skateboarders called back 'No, we love Schubert!'


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## Aksel (Dec 3, 2010)

Blast some Xenakis at them.


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

Aksel said:


> Blast some Xenakis at them.


They'd probably love that even more. "Well, the kids of today..." (sounding like an old fart)...


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## Aksel (Dec 3, 2010)

Yes, us kids. How dare we, you know?
Hmm. Music that's more consistently crazy than Xenakis? I actually can't think of any.


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## Jean Christophe Paré (Nov 21, 2010)

Bruckner is amazing for being hanged.


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## myaskovsky2002 (Oct 3, 2010)

I like this site...

Vivaldi's concertos are ideal for cooking...

Martin


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## Xaltotun (Sep 3, 2010)

I continually misuse Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto n 1 and Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto n 2 (as well as other DRAMATIC pieces) as background music while reading aloud overtly dramatic (and sometimes poorly written) literature to my wife.

It's OH SO DRAMATIC and HILARIOUS.

p.s. I completely love and adore both abovementioned works with all my heart, so I'm certainly not making fun of them out of spite, but out of love ,)


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## Aksel (Dec 3, 2010)

Yay for overly dramatic reading!


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## Xaltotun (Sep 3, 2010)

You wouldn't believe how overtly dramatically I read those books. I'm so surprised that the neighbors haven't complained yet.


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## Comus (Sep 20, 2010)

Mahler is good for burying your child.

Scriabin is good for expanding your consciousness, by legal means, of course.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

Comus said:


> Mahler is good for burying your child.


Of course, he's also good for resurrecting your child. Or anyone else, for that matter.


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## myaskovsky2002 (Oct 3, 2010)

*I consider myself*

as an extremely active person. ALWAYS I listen to music while training, I lift weights. Meanwhile I lift weights....I love opera for that. I concentrate a lot in music, then I often put operas I don't know and want to know. Lately it was Der Singende Teufel (Schreker) an opera never recorded commercialy...I bought it in a weird place. The opera is nice but is less beautiful than Der Schmied von Gent...that I love.

Anyhow...almost nobody knows Schreker...I can say here whatever I want...

Franz Schreker, a great composer!

Martin, a bit sad,


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