The Sword and Laser discussion
What background music do you listen to while reading?
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My standard reading music, if I listen to anything, is Ambient 1: Music for Airports, by Brian Eno. To me it is the perfect background music.
Used to be just about anything. My ability to multitask has diminished, so it's classical music if any at all.
I have never understood why some people listen(?) to music whilst reading. How is it possible to actively listen to music and concentrate on what you are reading at the same time. Perhaps I only have a single core CPU of a brain.
Noel wrote: "I have never understood why some people listen(?) to music whilst reading. How is it possible to actively listen to music and concentrate on what you are reading at the same time. Perhaps I only have a single core CPU of a brain."Dude, you need to upgrade your brain to an I7.
Yeah! That's quad core action. I could read, listen to music, listen to the latest s&l podcast AND listen to my wife talking at the same time. On second thoughts I'll stick with my Commodore 64.
I don't usually listen to anything while I'm reading, unless you count audiobooks--then, it's whatever crap the gym is playing combined with the sounds of working out.That said, I can usually filter out most things when I'm reading books in print. This proves a useful skill when I go home for the holidays and my family is watching crappy TV.
I can barely read when somebody on the train is talking, I have to hum to myself out loud (in my head, if that makes sense), so I can drown out whatever conversation is going on.
Most of the time I can't handle other distractions while I am reading. I mean the whole reason I read is to get absorbed in the story and the world that my mind creates around it.
For me it doesn't matter. My brain tends to filter out audio if I am doing anything visually. Because of this audiobooks don't do it for me.
I use music occasionally just as "filler" because I know I won't remember what I heard.
Mostly I just set my mp3 to shuffle, or turn the TV on. Silence is really annoying. :-D But if I'm reading something with alot of action I may switch over to something with a good beat, but not too hard; Evanescence, Within Temptation, Lacuna Coil, etc.
I think movies and TV have spoiled us, somethings just don't sound right without a good soundtrack. :-D
"Echoes Across the Astral Wasteland" by the Photon Wave Orchestra.
Some good ideas.Just to clear up, my original post was to look for Music that was background music to shut out the distracting noises, not to listen to as such, but to enhance the reading environment.
My preferred reading environment is silence, as I also can't multi-task my brain. But when the TV is on, or the kids are making a lot of noise or I'm by the pool. Something calming and easy listening background noise, to not dirstact me but to drown out the other noise is helpful. Anything with lyrics is a non-starter for me.
Jonshann0w wrote: "My preferred reading environment is silence, as I also can't multi-task my brain. But when the TV is on, or the kids are making a lot of noise or I'm by the pool...."Same here. There's a TV in my bedroom that wouldn't be, if I had my way. On the rare occasions I can get absorbed in my reading, I find I either have to cover my head with a pillow or read really fast to get my head into the text as quickly as possible.
Put me in the "music to drown out background noise" camp. As a result I am best off with something along the lines of a movie score, classical, or otherwise primarily instrumental. I typically use Pandora radio to find something appropriately themed. For instance I'll use Howard Shore as the basis for a channel when reading classic fantasy, Li Xiangting when reading something of an asian theme, or Yo-Yo Ma when all else fails.Jeff
I am interested to hear what other member suggest.
John