Classical Music To Study To

This piece lends a joy and ease to any environment surrounding it, and it creates an ethereal sense of happiness. Whenever I listen to this piece, I don’t imagine anything; it clears my mind and allows me to relax. This piece sets my entire mood for studying; it is upbeat enough that it gets me pumped and focused, but it also doesn’t distract me and take away from my concentration.

I love this piece because I was a part of the orchestra when my friend played the cello solo at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. It brings me back to the community that I found which empowers and strengthens my love for music. Because of this, whenever I hear this piece, I imagine performing on a stage as a part of an orchestra and watching the soloist bring tears to the audience’s eyes. It makes me super proud of the community that music creates and it motivates me to become a better student in everything I do.

The energy within this piece makes me super happy and it never fails to put me in a good mood. Whenever I listen to this piece, I imagine a lively dance floor and lots of happy smiles, usually with the faces of my friends enjoying themselves. It reminds me of the good things that I need to cherish in my life and it keeps me grateful and grounded. I imagine the composer was imagining the same thing when he wrote the piece, or at least he had some sort of image of distilled effervescent joy that he wanted to convey.

Young Artist in Residence, Natalie Tan, was selected in partnership with Cognizart by Metro Arts Inc., through the Young Artists Debut! 2020 Competition.

I fell in love with the way the instruments are layered over each other and leave transparency for the melody, but then build up in resonant swells. I love how triumphant and vibrant this piece is. I picture a verdant field with flowers of all different vibrant colors. When I am looking for music to study to, I choose pieces and songs that allow me to focus but also give me energy in one way or another. Dvorak’s piece and its swells of energy and dynamic fluidity achieve both of these goals. And I just love it.

I read the book Schindler’s List when I was in middle school, and it was riveting in detail and emotion, especially for a thirteen-year-old. I love this piece because it holds a melancholy that can’t really be expressed sufficiently. To put it a different way, I don’t think I could ever really fully understand this piece and the depth of pain it tries to convey, which puts the world and my own experiences into perspective. It drives me to study because it forces me to contemplate the intersectionality of issues on a global scale and to then think creatively to make the world a better place.

The fourth ballade is almost the epitome of romantic era piano pieces for me. It brings me to a place of nostalgia because of my childhood memories listening to it. The beauty in this piece for me is its sometimes haunting, sometimes delicately beautiful nature which quickly gives way to triumphant passion. I like to think that my own experiences with this piece were also probably my first encounter with the concept of the sublime, and it has contributed to my appreciation and growth as a musician from very early on. This piece is also super energizing to listen to and it makes me excited to study whatever I am putting my mind to.