What part does music play in your life?

Apart from my family music IS my life. I truly fear deafness.

Oh music plays a HUGE part in my life Anya I don't know what I would do without it. I am not a great TV fan but love music.

I have music for every mood. Housework music (that gets played a lot).
Relaxing music (that doesn't get played enough).
Angry music (turned up loud so DH knows to stay out of my way).
Sad music (for when I need a good cry).

I love to go to concerts whenever I can and have seen some of the greatest people over the years.

In the words of John Miles...........

music was my first love...and it will be my last,
music of the future and music of the past

To live without my music would be impossible to do
cos' in this world of trouble, my music pulls me through

Music plays a lesser and lesser part in my life these days. Always used to have the radio on. Either R2 or, with my morning bath, R3, just for a little while.

I don't know why I've changed.

Can I recommend a CD called "Songs of Home" to everyone? It is by the baritone Njabulo Madlala. He was brought up in a South African township and his vocal talent has been his passport to a more secure life. He won the Kathleen Ferrier prize a couple of years ago.

But his heart is still with his family and his home and this lovely CD combines the most beautiful gentle renditions of African songs and lullabies with superb songs from Schubert, Schuman, R Strauss, Quilter and many more. It is a true delight.

I took it into hospital with me and after the op I put it on my Discman, plugged in my earphones and was transported away from the pain. It will always hold a special place in my heart.

I have met Njabulo as we commissioned him to sing in a community choirs event three years ago, and he is singing with us again next August. I even had the chance to sing a duet with him (briefly!) during a rehearsal!

That does sound lovely.

Just huge. Musicians and ex-cathedral choristers both sides of the family, the family is littered with professional and non-professionals and DS is currently at uni composing [hopefully]. My day often starts with links to his latest pieces to listen to on soundcloud.

I spend an hour or two a week running through things we are doing in choirs, maybe rummaging through youtube or spotify to see how others have done it. I am also Chief Midi File finder for the less confident members of one of my choirs, although DS will write them for me if I am desperate.

After that I start on the house and play music to stop me dying of boredom while I work or cook. That completely depends on mood, but it will usually be classical. I can be tempted by online radio stations though, ones that play music from any decade you choose with no adverts at all, just seamless music. They are good for a bop around the house while dusting.

DBH is a very good tenor, and actually gets paid to sing! We have a music room and the day before a concert he is to be heard out there warbling away, having a quick practice. He does belong to a choir, made up of professional singers only who get together three times a year, but he is most proud of being a deputy for the Tallis Scholars from time to time when they come to sing in this area. He is also a deputy at our local cathedral. Somehow in between he sings for choirs who need soloists, and also at the occasional wedding for a local posh wedding venue. DS also does that when he is around and available, he too is an ex-chorister.

DD is a flautist, I miss hearing her practising that, but DBH plays piano and flute and organ, DS plays clarinet and piano and guitar, I can fumble my way through the odd piano piece, so our house has always been an extremely noisy one.

There is very little music in my life. I find it hard (always have) to concentrate when any sort of music is playing, so don't often put on a CD and never listen to music stations except a bit of classical stuff when I'm in the car. The exception is that with my friends I sing once a month at a local nursing home (the same four hymns every time) and also we sing a few worship songs at our Sunday meeting. My mother in law lives for music and I do occasionally go to one of her concerts, my younger son sings and plays guitar so I listen to him when he's playing and my friends runs a gospel choir so I attend a fair few of their concerts. Funnily enough today I searched youtube for a bit of Glen Campbell to listen to when I was cleaning the kitchen. Most unusual for me.
(Not cleaning the kitchen, I do that regularly. )

I like Songs of Praise. Good music to a lot of hymns.

I can't remember how old I was when Mum taught me to read music but it must have been around the same time as I learned to read books. She taught music so there was always a piano in the house and children would come for lessons after school. My long suffering father, who had a good singing voice but didn't play any instruments, would mutter things like, 'That child has about as much rhythm as the hind leg of a donkey.'

None of has excelled in any particular instrument. We can all play the piano - a bit, guitar - some of us are quite good (not me) DD used to play 'cello and DGD3 plays the flute. We all sing or have sung in various choirs.

I couldn't imagine a life without music.

I use music a lot to help with stress. I also like it on when I'm relaxed at the weekend reading the papers. I have favourite stuff and associate music with events. When I was going through my divorce ( still not finished a year later ) I listened to the same Katherine Jenkins CD when I was driving up and down the motorway and it calmed me. On another note( no pun intended!) I cannot bear to listen to music I associate with sad events like funerals and will turn off the radio if it upsets me. There is one song which played in the New Year after my sons death that I still cannot listen to 30 years later.

* TwiceAsNice *

Thank you so much Jinglebellsfrocks that is so kind of you

To me music is as important as breathing.

We have radios or CD players in every room.

Music and sounds have helped me cope with tinnitus.

Imagine life without music! It's the background to our life, isn't it.
It fills my house, and my car, all the time. Any kind of music except some jazz.
At the moment I'm hooked on Bryan Adams and the latest Charles Aznavour album. But my overwhelming favourite is Queen.

I have Playlists on my iPad for most occasions/moods. I've three new songs to learn for Rock Choir; Viva la Vida, Fall at Your Feet and Time after Time and I'm just absorbing them while making a beaded curtain.

Queen are my absolute favourites too henetha they have something for every mood.

I also love Garth Brooks, Brad Paisley, The Zac Brown Band, Boz Scaggs, Johnny Cash and many many more.

I love Queen, too. Everything except Rap, really.

When we were on holiday a coach driver told us how Otis Redding had written Dock of the Bay at Sausalito and had died soon after recording it. Strangely enough there was a documentary about him on BBC4 two nights ago; not a great fan of that kind of music but have always loved that song [hadn't realised he was only 26 when he died, either ]. Currently have the new Alt J playing on a loop.

I enjoy a variety of music and have played a number of instruments - none particularly well because I didn't like practising! It all depends on my mood really. I used to sing a lot at school which was fun and keep thinking I might join a community choir but from being a high soprano I'm now an alto and don't think I could manage sticking to the harmony rather than the main then if you see what I mean . I enjoy helping GS with his piano practice - he's just started learning and he's doing well. GD is learning the drums!!!

I was a musician for over twenty years... after which I went straight!
Since then I have listened less and less - but to better and better. The older I get, the more I can be affected emotionally by great music and great performance - don't let me listen to anything wonderful without a box of.
tissues at hand...

There is too much music. It is omnipresent, and so it is not valued as it should be - and being honest (for a change?) most of it is mere noise - sans harmony, sans melody, sans - everything.
If I am going to listen to something I want it to be an event, not a constant stream of drivel.

How can you say there is "too much music" feetlebaum?

I' afraid I can't agree with you. Music is a matter of taste and everyone's is different. It doesn't mean that it's necessarily good or bad. I love to go to live concerts too but it's not always possible is it?

I think there's a lot of music these days because of utube, Spotify etc which means that you don't have to get 'discovered' before everyone can hear your music. What never ceases to amaze me is that, given how few notes there are how many variations have been/will be created.

Although there can be a fair amount of plagiarism, most of it is unwitting. One of my friends actually manages to make a living as a composer - rare in these times. She often sends me clips and asks worriedly 'does this sound familiar?'.

goldengirl yes, it is really hard sometimes. I used to be a sop and now am a first alto. At first, if I was tired I would 'lapse'. But it's only the really well-known stuff that throws me now, and fortunately - or unfortunately - most of the things we do aren't all that well-known.