Music while you work. Some recommendations

Working from home certainly has its advantages - it can actually make you more productive, as long as you keep the distractions to a minimum. Easier said than done, but I'm living proof that it's possible.

Distractions

My working life in the last 20 years has involved extended periods of travel, mostly around Asia, followed by several weeks of relative isolation in my workroom in Auckland, New Zealand.

One key component in balancing work and home life is music, so I've put together some suggestions for how music can make the WFH situation more enjoyable.

It's important to have structure to your day and to build any important  distractions formally into the day. So, for example, a 15 minute break, morning and afternoon, for some reading or guitar practice. 

In a home/work environment, some music sits better than others. If what I'm doing doesn't require too much creative concentration - data inputting, say - I'll go for something tuneful and engaging. In most cases, where I'm writing, I need music without a beat. As a drummer in another life, I find it hard not to zero in on the rhythm if I've got rock or funk music playing.

ECM Records

The answer is invariably the acoustic, analogue jazz and ambient music emanating from the German label ECM. Their remarkable catalogue has been described as 'the most beautiful sound next to silence'. What separates it from new age doodling is the quality of the composition, the playing and the recording.

The constant factor in the 'ECM sound' is Talent Studios in Oslo, Norway, where most of the classic albums were recorded by sound engineers Jan Erik Kongshaug and Martin Wieland. 

My collection of ECM records is mostly on vinyl and is largely from the label's classic period in the 1970s, when it still had people like Chick Corea and Pat Metheny on its roster. 

My favourite ECM artist is Ralph Towner - such a beautiful and uplifting guitarist, whatever mood you're in.

The catalogue is huge, but here are some recommendations based on my own collection:

ECM - the most beautiful sound next to silence

John Abercrombie/Ralph Towner - Sargasso Sea
Anouar Brahem - Thimar
Gary Burton/Steve Swallow - Hotel Hello
Gary Burton Quintet - Ring
Chick Corea/Gary Burton - Crystal Silence
Chick Corea - Return To Forever
Egberto Gismonti - Sol Do Meio Dia
Charlie Haden/Jan Garbarek - Magico
Zakir Hussain - Making Music
Keith Jarrett - My Song / Belonging
Keith Jarrett - Nude Ants
Pat Metheny Group / Offramp / First Circle
Enrico Rava - The Plot
Ralph Towner - Anthem
Ralph Towner - Diary / Solstice
Ralph Towner -  Solo Concert
Ralph Towner/Gary Burton -Matchbook
Eberhard Weber - Fluid Rustle
Kenny Wheeler - Gnu High

One of my all-time favourite atmospheric jazz records is the Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays album 'As Falls Wichita, So Falls Wichita Falls'. It is a wonderfully sequenced LP that evokes various moods, largely uplifting. But it can also be contemplative, if listened to away from your desk.

Acoustic guitar music

There's a lot of really good acoustic guitar music around, but I'm definitely old school. I tend to listen to the folk players from the past, such as Davy Graham, Bert Jansch and John Renbourn, John Fahey, Stefan Grossman and Leo Kottke, with more modern exceptions like James Elkington and kiwi (via Long Island) guitar genius Nigel Gavin.

Recommended while you work:
Bruce Cockburn - Circles In The Stream
James Elkington - Wintres Woma
John Fahey - Of Rivers & Religion
Nigel Gavin - Visitation
Gitbox Rebellion - Curveball
Stefan Grossman - Guitar Instrumentals (Memphis Jellyroll)
Michael Gulezian - Unspoken Intentions
Michael Hedges - Aerial Boundaries
The Bert Jansch Sampler
Pat Metheny - One Quiet Night
Pentangle - Sweet Child
The John Renbourn Sampler
Alan Stivell - Reflections

Jazz

Some people take inspiration or motivation from their chosen background music. The Japanese author Huraki Murakami says he almost always works listening to music. Murakami used to own a jazz bar in Tokyo and has at least 10,000 vinyl records. He has a nice work life situation too, as you can see below.

Murakami's study room

Here's a list of jazz recordings I'll play while I work:
Cannonball Adderley - Somethin' Else
Ron Carter - All Blues
John Coltrane- Blue Train
Chick Corea - Piano Improvisations Vol 2
Miles Davis - Sketches of Spain
Miles Davis - My Funny Valentine
Miles Davis - In A Silent Way
Miles Davis - Jack Johnson
Kevin Eubanks - Spirit Talk 1 & 2
Bill Evans Trio - Portrait in Jazz
Stan Getz - Reflections
Herbie Hancock - Maiden Voyage / Empyrean Isles
Charles Mingus - Tijuana Moods
Modern Jazz Quartet - Blues at Carnegie Hall
Wes Montgomery - So Much Guitar
Steps Ahead

Ambience

For music to take me off into another realm, I keep coming back to one consistent source of ambient quality - the San Francisco radio station Hearts of Space. Their soundscapes are designed mainly for those seeking transcendence - and stoners - but they are also suitable for the home worker seeking music to put them in the zone. Highly recommended. Here's a link that shows their various ambient music sub-genres: https://v4.hos.com/channels 

The Hearts Of Space website - slow music for fast times

Their slogan is Slow Music For Fast Times. The shows are all themed and typically last around 40 minutes to an hour. There are free programs once a week and a subscription streaming service. 

The quality of the music, to these ears, is always high.

This was the very first Hearts of Space show that I heard back in 1990s - Drifter, which gives you a good idea of what to expect:
https://v4.hos.com/programs/details/445

Alternatively, for a more varied ambient menu, you could try Flow State, a service that sends out two hours of ambient work-friendly music every weekday. Artists they’ve highlighted include Johann Johannsson, Khruangbin, David Borden, Steve Reich, and Ludovico Einaudi.

I hope you get some enjoyment from these lists. 
Keep calm and stay safe, wherever you are. Enjoy the music.