Playlist

Managing life sometimes requires assistance, especially when it comes to turning the din of a day into something worth listening to.  The task I gave myself was to find 30 minutes of music that would return you to the center of your world.  It turns out to be closer to 42 minutes, but I just couldn’t cut anything, so here goes (each title links you to the YouTube of the piece):

Clair De Lune If you’re looking for music that will leave your stress in a puddle, drip away.  The warm rush of the chords and the sparse accompaniment to the main themes form a gentle whirling wind that takes off layers of woe like a fall wind gently brings down crisp leaves.

The Swan  Your puddle of stress becomes an elegant gliding pool at the skillful hands of Yo-Yo Ma.  It’s best to listen to all this music with your eyes closed, but come back and watch this video.  You’ll see Yo-Yo Ma is somewhere else during this performance.  Luckily, he takes us along.

When I Fall in Love  Much of the pop music of the 50s and 60s benefited from magnificent arrangements of orchestras (keep this in mind when you next listen to early Motown).  Add the once-in-a-generation voice of Nat King Cole, and this why-hurry version of a classic finds you involuntarily dropping the shoulders you never even knew were three tense inches higher than they should have ever been.

A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square  The Manhattan Transfer is best known for their upbeat renditions of big band and blues tunes (need to clean your house in two minutes?  Try this). This voice-only version of a timeless classic shows why many consider them to be the best vocal music ensemble in the history of recorded music.  The last 30 seconds is simply magic.

Andantino, Mozart’s Concerto for Flute and Harp  This is the best piece Mozart wrote, and while a couple of the harp solos require close listening, they are more than worth the trip.  Flutist Jean-Pierre Rampal had a knack for finding the French in everything, and his performance here transports you to a picnic of brie and baguette with tart tatin. This is a piece to revel in.

Don Oiche Ud I mBeithil It’s a special piece that takes the mourning tones of Irish music and turns them into something holy and hopeful, but leave it to the Chieftains.  Burgess Meredith (who played The Penguin on TV’s Batman in my youth) provides the English narrative, and the original lyric follows.  Part of a Chieftains’ Christmas album that is worth hunting down on eBay.

Fire and Rain  I’d always hoped there was a more sparse, percussion-free version of this song, preferably featuring a cello, and this came along on my playlist last year. (For a similar, freer version of Elton John’s Tiny Dancer, try this.) This performance makes the most of the space between the notes.

Being With You  The lush orchestration of many of George Benson’s recordings make his mastery of the box guitar all the more complete.  A little rhythm here prepares you to re-enter the world with renewed purpose—but just a little.

Zoom This band played “drop the dictionary” to name itself, and landed on The Commodes.  Thank goodness they went with the neighboring Commodores instead, led by a young Lionel Richie.  Debuting the year I graduated high school, this is the wish-prayer that guides me on my best days, and seemed the best way for you to segue into continuing your time of refreshing by embracing the world anew.

Night Heart
The greatest sin
Is when the last one in bed
Wakes the other.
I put on my best stealth
And succeeded, I thought.
Then I gently patted her hand
To wish her sweet dreams
And her fingers cascaded over
And into
Mine
Just like the first few minutes
At the movies
On the walk to church
Or when a piece of news
Defies words.
But her sleep-filled breathing
Never slowed
Or diminished.

Her heart is so true
She loves in her sleep.

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