CLASSICAL
The old masters. I tried not to include most opera composers, since singing/lyrics interfere with concentration. Most of these playlists are at least an hour long:
Baroque (prancing through the flowers with royalty):
- Albinoni
- Bach
- Corelli
- Handel
- Guerre
- Purcell
- Scarlatti
- Telemann
- Vivaldi
Classical (sipping tea with royalty while listening to their woes and gossip):
- Beethoven
- Haydn
- Mozart
- Paganini
Romantic (watching a heartfelt, teary-eyed scene in a soap opera):
- Berlioz
- Bizet
- Borodin
- Brahms
- Bruch
- Bruckner
- Chopin
- Dvorak
- Field
- Franck
- Gade
- Grieg
- Liszt
- Mendelssohn
- Rachmaninov
- Rimsky-Korsakov
- Rubenstein
- Saint-Saëns
- Schubert
- Robert Schumann
- Clara Schumann
- Smetana
- Strauss II
- Tchaikovsky
- Wagner
- Weber
Impressionistic (stargazing in an open field at midnight):
Late Romantic/Early Modern (dramatically confessing your love in the pouring rain):
- Albéniz
- Beach
- Chaminade
- de Falla
- Dukas
- Elgar
- Fauré
- Glazunov
- Mahler
- Respighi
- Satie
- Sibelius
- Strauss
- Vaughan Williams
Modern (these get sub-categories because they’re so different):
- Emotional and moving
- Barber
- Bartok
- Glass
- Holst
- Ives
- Kabalevsky
- Kodaly
- Poulenc
- Schoenberg
- Trimble
- We’re off on an epic adventure!
- Copeland
- Grofe
- Prokofiev
- Tailleferre
- Dramatic theme for every super villain ever
- Adams
- Musgrave
- Shostakovich
- Stravinsky
- Tower
- Curious and off-putting, but hypnotic
- Jazz hands and big city lights
- Gershwin
- Joplin
- Milhaud
- Still
Long, random playlists: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)
Youtube Channels:
- Classical Music
- The Spirit of Classical Music
- TopClassicalMusic
- naxosorchestral
- Classical Music11
There’s also playlists on Spotify (just go to Browse > Genres & Moods > Classical).
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CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL
Sometimes the old masters are too stuffy. I get it. Have some more long playlists from a few of my favorite contemporary artists:
Piano
- Yiruma
- Michael Nyman
- Ludovico Einaudi
- Brian Crain
- Jim Brickman
- Ryuichi Sakamoto
- Joe Hisaishi
- Yann Tiersen
Violin
- Itzhak Perlman
- Vanessa Mae Storm
- Emilie Autumn (electric)
- David Garrett
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EDM
Maybe you don’t like classical at all. That’s fine, too. Here’s some wub-wub to get your mind on track:
Aggressive & Intense (dubstep, deathstep, metalstep, etc)
- Long, random playlists: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)
- Youtube Channels:
- Glitch Mob
- Excision
- TheSupremeKronus
Chill & Melodic (chillstep, deep house, melodic dubstep)
- Long, random playlists: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)
- Youtube Channels:
- Pulse8Music
- ChillYourMind
- Fluidified
Upbeat & Dancy (electro house, club music, more chillstep)
- Long, random playlists: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)
Youtube Channels:
- Madeon
- Paul van Dyk
- Omnitica
There are countless other Youtube channels and mixes. You can also find some playlists on Spotify (Browse > Genres & Moods > Electronic).
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INSTRUMENTAL COVERS OF POPULAR SONGS
Here are a few channels to check out if you’re starting from nowhere:
Piano
- Miri Lee 이미리 Pianistmiri – pop, r&b, rap, some classical, rock, and k-pop
- David Sides – pop, r&b, rap, some rock
- oysterlovers – pop, r&b, rap, some classical and rock
- The Theorist – pop, r&b, and rap
- TheUnsungHeroine – pop & electronic/dubstep
- YourPianoCover – mostly pop, a few rap
- Steve Siu Piano – pop, country, classical, some rock and rap
- Yoonha85TV – pop, rap, r&b, some k-pop
- Brooklyn Duo (piano & cello) – pop
- ThePianoGuys (piano & cello) – pop, r&b, classical, rock
Hour-long, yearly pop playlists by oysterlovers: 2013, 2014
Yearly pop medleys by AlexTanMusic: 2012, 2013, 2014
Violin
- The Mad Violinist & SCO – pop, r&b, rap, dubstep
- Lindsey Stirling – pop, r&b, rap, soundtracks, classical
- Momento – pop & rock
- Josh Vietti – pop, r&b, rap, rock, classical
- JuNCurryAhn – pop, k-pop, classical, soundtracks
- David Wong – pop, r&b, rock, rap
- Bryson Andres – pop, r&b, rock, electronic
- JasonYangViolin – pop, rock, rap, soundtracks
Of course, there are countless people who don’t have huge channels and maybe only a cover or two. The search bar is your friend. And don’t forget to make a playlist!
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VIDEO GAME SOUNDTRACKS
Think about it, there are tons of people whose only job is to get the atmosphere of a game right by carefully composing the right music. And there are plenty of games with beautiful music. I love these playlists:
- Remember Me (brilliant mix of electronic and classical)
- Papo & Yo (relaxing and tropical)
- Rayman Origins (springy, lighthearted, and amazing)
- Rayman Legends (energetic, goofy, and wonderful)
- Dark Cloud 2/Dark Chronicle (beautiful, bouncy, heart-racing)
- To The Moon (dreamy and moving)
- Kingdom Hearts (gorgeous, epic, breathtaking)
- Mirror’s Edge (soothing and mechanical)
- Hamtaro: Ham-Hams Unite (adorable 8-bit)
- Alice: Madness Returns (odd, creepy, and carnival-esque)
- Journey (peaceful and atmospheric)
- Child of Light (melancholic and powerful)
- Trine (epic and mystical)
- The Vanishing of Ethan Carter (mysterious and haunting)
- Valiant Hearts (pretty and heartbreaking)
- Walking Dead Season 1 (depressing and beautiful)
- Braid (relaxing, Celtic vibes)
- Botanicula (breathy, vibrant, playful)
- Machinarium (earthy, futuristic, energetic)
Long, random playlists: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
Youtube Channels:
- VGameOSTs
- SoundtrackVideoGame
- Video Game Soundtracks
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MOVIE SOUNDTRACKS
Just like video games, movies rely heavily on music to set the mood for the audience. Here are some of my favorite playlists:
- Studio Ghibli
- Spirited Away
- Howl’s Moving Castle
- Princess Mononoke
- Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
- Kiki’s Delivery Service (x)
- Castle in the Sky
- My Neighbor Totoro
- Ponyo
- Porco Rosso
- The Wind Rises
- Grave of the Fireflies
- random playlists: (1) (2) (3)
- Classic Disney piano covers (1) (2)
- Lord of the Rings
- The Fellowship of the Ring
- The Two Towers
- The Return of the King
- Amelie
- How to Train Your Dragon
- How to Train Your Dragon 2
- Coraline
- The Secret of Kells
- The Tale of Princess Kaguya
- The Piano
- Schindler’s List
- Harry Potter
- Philosopher’s/Sorcerer’s Stone
- Chamber of Secrets
- Prisoner of Azkaban
- Goblet of Fire
- Order of the Phoenix
- Half-Blood Prince
- Deathly Hallows pt 1
- Deathly Hallows pt 2
You can also view a full list of Grammy Award-winning soundtracks here
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ANIME SOUNDTRACKS
You’ll look like weeaboo trash, but at least you’ll be concentrating. You might need to skip a few tracks here and there if they have lyrics (that messes up my concentration, at least). That said, here’s some recommended playlists:
- Elfen Lied (flowy and pretty)
- Tokyo Ghoul √A (powerful, electronic, heart-wrenching)
- Samurai Champloo (funky, hip-hop, soothing, amazing)
- Hellsing Ultimate (epic, funky, aggressive, but also sad and moving)
- Death Note (emotional, edgy, rock n’ roll)
- Attack on Titan (sometimes emotional & harrowing, sometimes epic & gritty)
- Ghost in the Shell (hollow, lonely, mysterious)
- Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (gritty, funky, upbeat)
- Blue Gender (funky, badass, intense)
- Mnemosyne (jazzy, upbeat)
- Cowboy Bebop (sometimes smooth jazz, sometimes wild & funky)
- Neon Genesis Evangelion (more smooth jazz)
- Fishugi Yuugi (emotional, romantic)
- Sailor Moon (happy & upbeat)
- Cardcaptor Sakura (lighthearted, bubbly)
- Inuyasha (epic, emotional, inspiring)
Long, random playlists: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)
Youtube Channels:
- Dolan Zoldhost
- EpicAnimeRequiem
- Epic San
- MrAnimeSoundtrack
- Erolox OST
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Like I said, this isn’t a complete list but hopefully a good jumping-off point. Feel free to add to areas with your own suggestions. Have fun listening and go be productive!
Final fantasy XII &co 