The Whole Music Experience

Salsa dancing, Mexico, Wikipedia Music Videos to get your blood pumping, and to inspire your heart... Often midday we feel sluggish and we feel tempted to take a nap or down another cup of coffee.  However, I encourage you to forgo the caffeine and take a music break instead.  The best way to do this is to start with a slower to moderate beat per minute song and gradually build up to rousing Latin, African, or other high-energy music.  Some of the music traditions from the Subcontinent can also provide you with invigorating beats. Take a 20 minute to 30 minute music break, and at least a 10 minute music break. You can even take a short trip over to YouTube and listen to the following songs: Let's start with Habib Koite and Bamada from Mali with a medium tempo with an uplifting melody: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5_HfjcjR_M At relatively the same tempo, here is Ana Moura singing an uptempo fado from Portugal http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V42ix2CtZ8Y ...

I woke up this morning, with a storm slamming against the windows.  I decided to stay in bed longer and listen to Bach keyboard works.  I slipped Murray Perahia's Bach Partitas 2, 3 & 4 into my portable CD player and listened to Bach's solo piano via headphones.  The ostinato (bass line played with left hand), and the counterpoint so skillfully played by Perahia calmed my nerves. My mind was racing at the time with thoughts tripping over each other. So I focused on the music, and listened intently while absorbing every nuance into my cells. About 15 minutes of listening to this recording, plus an eye pillow over my face, gave me the same affect as a half an hour of sitting meditation. I realize that anyone who has read sound healing and healing music books would have seen Bach's music at the top of a healing music list.  Experts discuss the architecture and the mathematics of Bach's ingenuous compositions, not that I comprehend the intricacies of Bach's...