What do you think, is it possible to work or study while listening to music? Can music be stimulating for our brain cells or does it distract us while we work?

The questions raised are very interesting, but wait ‘till you read the results.

Experts have established that it is good to listen to ambient music for better and faster work with numbers but data entry is best done while listening to pop music. Dance music is recommended if your work involves problem solving, while classical music helps with work that involves attention to detail.

What’s best to listen to while doing your daily household chores? We have recommended some rhythms that go quite well with tidying up, dusting, scrubbing, vacuuming, ironing and, of course, cooking.

If you’ve noticed that writing, calculating or other kind of work that requires special concentration best goes with music without lyrics, then you’re on the right track – many of our friends and colleagues share the same opinion… It is widely known that classical music has a healing effect on the brain, that it stimulates studying and working, that it is very useful when babies and children listen to it, that plants grow faster and cows give more milk when listening to classical music. I was so surprised this summer when, passing by a barn on Mokra Gora, I heard the sounds of the 2^nd movement of one of Mozart’s piano concertos. Well done!

Japanese scientist Dr Masaru Emoto performed experiments with water, observing frozen drops with a microscope while playing different kinds of music. Do you know what happened? When he played classical music the water molecules formed perfectly shaped geometric figures, while the very opposite happened to the sounds of heavy metal. You can read about this experiment here, but you will find much more information in the book The Hidden Messages in Water. 

Scientists have also established that Mozart’s music is characterized by a flow of loud-quiet sounds in the thirty-seconds range, which corresponds to the biological currents of the human brain. This is what leads to the synchronization of the left and the right brain hemispheres resulting in relaxation, improved concentration and thinking ability. So, in this way, Mozart’s music helps you warm up your brain and it also helps certain complex neurological patterns that are engaged in your brain activities such as math and chess, for example.

The pulse and the flow of Baroque music bring peace and order and research has shown that this is due to the fact that Baroque music has 60 beats per minute that equally stimulate both brain hemispheres. It is believed that, by listening to Baroque music, it’s possible to improve work and studying performance by up to five times. For this reason my list contains many Baroque music pieces and I recommend versions played on Baroque instruments in the old, authentic, Baroque way.

If you are looking for studying music or for music while working in a noisy office or for work that requires additional stimulation, here’s a list of recommendations:

1. Tartini – Tartini’s most famous violin sonatas Devil’s Trill Sonata and Didone Abbadonata are an absolute no.1 on my list

2. Handel – Handel wrote the piece Water Music as a court composer as background music for King George I’s trip on the River Thames; it was used in experiments with students.
3. Vivaldi – this unusual composer’s instrumental music is perfect for work because its pulse is unobtrusive and string instruments always prevail. We recommend his Concerto Grosso, the Four Seasons, my favourite L’estro Armonico which is a set of 12 concertos and La Stravaganza 

4. Bach – this great man’s music is described as music closest to God and, if you listen to it long enough, you will understand why. I don’t know what piece I would leave off the list, so you’d best start with this compilation 

5. Mozart – Mozart is Mozart…speaking of him, have you heard of the Mozart effect?
6. In its expression, jazz is close to classical music, so it can also be a good recommendation. I personally like to listen to Miles Davis, so I suggest you start your music exploration with him
7. Pregnant women who are in need of concentration should give smooth jazz a try – that was my experience during pregnancy. I remember that, while I was pregnant, I wrote the best music for the quartet while listening to a radio station that played only smooth jazz
8. You’re writing invoices, documents, transfer orders? You might look for inspiration for work in chill music; Buddha Bar compilations are widely acclaimed.
9. Soundtrack music deserves a place on the list. Of course, not every soundtrack, but pieces by musicians such as Morricone, Williams, Horner and other artists can be very useful in creative work.
10. At the average, we concentrate in 20-minute segments. With the help of neurologists and psychology professors, The company Focus At Will has established that there is some music that functions as a focus enhancer. With the help of the music that they suggest people can work up to 100 minutes before taking their first break! 

What do you usually listen to? Give us your suggestions in the comments section! 🙂