Favorite Writing Music

Oh... I've just discovered Hildegard of Bigen [YouTube].
It doesn't fit my story's period or tone but I think the sounds and the emotions it evokes help me write.
Or things like this Kodo Drummers/ing [YouTube] when I'm brainstorming...

 

I tend to get into both action or emotion through good dubstep, but I don't really have any one genre that does it for me. All I need is a song that is good enough to pull me in, something slow that has good tempo, good samples, good voices etc. just anything to make it special.

When I get into writing I don't really pay much conscious attention to the music though, I see that I've progressed down my playlist, so I know that I've listened to a number of songs, but I can't say I really remember listening to them. Good music does help me get into the mood to write,and I will cycle through songs until I find one or more that makes me feel in a way that's fittign for the scene I want to write. Sometimes I will make a short list of three to ten songs (or even just 1 dong) and put it on repeat.

 

The music I put on is dependent more on the characters I'm writing about. I actually try pretty hard to find appropriate theme songs for each character.

 

I like rock n roll for the driving fast beat. It helps me to keep a good pace and in a great flow. That and it helps drown out some excess noise.

 

I just put on white noise to drown out everything else. Music would be devastatingly distracting. I'd start analysing it. (that upbeat was a strange place to start a triplet; was that a dotted eighth-note at the end of that phrase?; did they just snip a quarter note off that last bar?; was that a suspended second or a suspended fourth I just heard?; was that passing chord diminished?; etc.)

I couldn't possibily get any writing done with my head full of these kinds of things.

 

Perhaps that's why I find dubstep fitting, not much singing in that either

 

I feel the same way about music with lyrics, or at lyrics I can understand.

For normal writing I use basic classical, I am working through Hayden's string quartets at the moment. Also enjoy (like folks above) Kodo and Gregorian chants. Depending on the scene there is usually an opera that will do the trick as well.

When I am short on energy I will go to Queen, the Clash or Midnight oil.

And nothing can get me stoked to write a battle scene better than the great Welsh song, Men of Harlech (made famous in the movie Zulu):

[video=youtube_share;DRtnWVvDX6k]http://youtu.be/DRtnWVvDX6k[/video]

 

I do find that the songs I use are those songs that I like the best at the moment, or sometimes it's the music I have a craving for. Right now, the songs I've been using lately are turning a little stale, so I'll go on a dubstep hunt soon. Too bad it's quite difficult to find good dubstep.

 

Generally, music without lyrics.

Lyrics can get in the way of concentration sometimes...

 

Have you heard of Massive attack? Psychedelic, check. Melodic, check.

I think it's a wonderful band that makes the most balanced music that I've ever heard.

 

Dark ambient and gaming music has been my favorite to write to (Jeremy Soule!). But recently, "Come Undone" by Duran Duran and "Toy Soldiers" by Martika have been added to my WIP's soundtrack.

 

Depends what I'm writing but its usually my favourite artist, Joe Bonamassa, Scott Stap, Within Temptation, Metallica, then all the older rock bands

BUT sometimes when I'm writing darker stuff I like to listen to Disturbed, kill-switch engaged, story of the year, that kind of stuff. I have play list too, which I'm going to go utilise right now and get off the internet

 

I like soundtracks (e.g. Hans Zimmer) and ambient music (e.g. Brian Eno) to write to.