Working: music or silence?

[Abril Lombardi]

Hey community, I recently had a fight with my partner about this: should we work with music or not? I prefer music because it helps my concentration, while he needs complete silence.

What is best? and how could we manage to work in the same place without fighting about this? S.O.S.

[john]

3 hours ago, Abril Lombardi said:

Hey community, I recently had a fight with my partner about this: should we work with music or not? I prefer music because it helps my concentration, while he needs complete silence.

What is best? and how could we manage to work in the same place without fighting about this? S.O.S.

I like music while I work…. Unless I am working on something that needs me to work with a specific piece of music.

 

The solution? Dun dun dun…… ear buds.

[Peggy]

I can tune just about anything out (not my dog) and find silence.  Sometimes, depending on the type of work I'll start the work in silence. Other times, I'll be listening..

 

[GregB]

Are you really listening, analysing the arrangement, playing, mixing, lyric message, etc..? Or is it just a pleasant noise drowning out more intrusive sounds ... like the 'cone of silence' (but with sound).

 

For me closely listening to music and ANY successfully doing other mental tasks (line reading, working at the computer, solving a problem) are mutually exclusive ... my tiny brain can only do one or the other.  If I'm absorbed by the page, I'm only aware of the music because of the silence at the end of an album.  If I'm listening to the music, the page becomes meaningless. 

 

So silence does it for me but, hey, we're all different by varying degrees.

 

And also silence when I'm trying to create music!  Any external stimulus causes the emerging music to turn away and evaporate.

 

Greg  

 

 

[Peggy]

9 hours ago, GregB said:

Are you really listening, analysing the arrangement, playing, mixing, lyric message, etc..? Or is it just a pleasant noise drowning out more intrusive sounds ... like the 'cone of silence' (but with sound).

Maybe listening just alittle, but you're right..probably more of a pleasant noise drowning out other things.. and sometimes that's silence.

[Mahesh]

I listen to music while I'm working ALL the time. In fact, I have a Songstuff meeting to attend in less than 20 and I'm working away listening to Gregory Porter beautifully singing "Painted on Canvas". Weirdly enough, it helps me focus on my work (unless directly music-related as John mentioned) a lot more!

Now, it's true that one cannot multitask. You cannot listen to all that is happening in the music while you are focused on another task. But personally, I'm not listening to any of those from an analytical point of view; I'm just listening. Without purpose. Just giving the beautiful piece a lil warm company   

 

In one sense, it just makes me feel better and less angsty about the task however daunting when I can have a lil John Mayer or Norah Jones or Novo Amor in the background. Ooof, I wouldn't mind some Nocturnes by Chopin in there too! 

 

In another sense, I've observed particularly with my OCD that it's harder to focus when a lot of things are happening at the same time. The stress of multi tasking always feels multiplied to me because of it. The right kind of music that catches my awareness' gaze tends to keep the sails steady taking me thru its fascinating story and thus has a compounding effect on my focus with the other tasks being done. 

 

Obviously, as you can see, specific musical situations can be taken to advantage. But honestly, whether it's quiet or with the music on, if the mind is screaming without control, it is always best to not fight with it and follow what works for you best.

 

[Clay Anderson Johnson]

1 hour ago, Mahesh said:

I listen to music while I'm working ALL the time.

 

I do also but in different ways according to the situation.  Sometimes it is on external speakers, sometimes it is on my own internal soundtrack.  I frequently hear music whether there any is actually playing in the room or not.

 

I always thought that is why some people are musical.

Edited March 14, 2022 by Clay Anderson Johnson

[Mahesh]

10 hours ago, VoiceEx said:

Headphones? 😅

Why not?  

[Glammerocity]

It depends on the work. But generally, I hate work, or more specifcally I hate managers and also work, so I'd much rather have music, which helps pass the time. Sadly my non-musical working life is usually in corporate environments, where managers and a soul-destroying, weaponised silence abound.