Photo By Gail
You’ve seen the fabulous and boldly colorful designs of PolArt furniture on The ‘Gig many times before, and these flocked busts in a bright magenta pink hue might just add the ideal classic accent for your own home! Surely they would go perfectly with something like This!
Photographed at The ICFF 2018 at Javits Center, NYC!
Finding the right study routine can be difficult. Everyone does their best work under different conditions. Some of us are more prone to distraction, while others can’t work without ambient or background noise.
Studies on the issue have been inconclusive, but it is now believed that the optimum working conditions vary from individual to individual, and there is no single best way to increase productivity and focus. For many people, though, there are certain types of music which, when playing in the background, can increase focus and, therefore, the rate at which people work. In this article, we will take a look at some of the musical genres, which studies suggest are the most effective at aiding revision and would, therefore, make perfect background noise while studying an online military history degree.
Classical
When choosing music to aid your study, you will have more options available to you if you are willing to try genres that you wouldn’t necessarily listen to for pleasure. Classical music is the genre that is most often credited with increasing concentration, in some cases even general intelligence. It seems that the real answer is somewhere between these two possibilities and the effect varies from individual to individual.
Knowing where to start in choosing a piece of classical music can be difficult if you are unfamiliar with the genre. The best thing to do is have a look online for some of the big names: Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, etc. All their music is now in the public domain and you should be able to listen to any of their pieces easily and for free. Students studying an MMH degree may well appreciate the historical significance of much of this classical music.
For some people, classical music is a significant study aid while hitting the books for a military history degree.
Ambient
Ambient music is unique among other musical genres in that it is almost music that is not designed to be listened to. Instead, it is designed to play in the background to enhance the atmosphere of a room. This makes it a great choice for background music while studying. Ambient music sometimes contains vocals, but they are subtle. More commonly, voices are used as instruments, to produce musical sounds rather than form vocals.
The instruments that are used are designed to be gentle, and usually, produce slow and long sounds that blend into the background. Some ambient music incorporates nature sounds such as rain and waterfalls.
Unplugged
Remember, your goal here is to study, not to rave! Music that is loud and hectic, cluttered with a variety of different sounds will be too intrusive and make concentration hard. Instead, music that is acoustic or unplugged, meaning an absence of electronic instruments, tends to be less intrusive.
Choosing the right background music can make a huge difference to some students in terms of helping their concentration. The only way to find out for certain is to experiment, try different options, and see what works best for you!
Yoshiki at the Crosby Street Hotel in NYC (All Photos and Video By Gail)
A couple of weeks ago, I attended an intimate press screening and party for the upcoming theatrical release of the award-winning documentary, We Are X, which explores the amazing history of Japanese rock band X (known as X Japan in the US), focusing on the group’s charismatic drummer and founder, Yoshiki Hayashi. The documentary is just fantastic, and you can read my review on this site closer to the film’s release date in late October!
Yoshiki was present at the screening, and sat with director Stephen Kijak (Scott Walker: 30 Century Man) for a Q and A about the film before treating press and fans in attendance to a brief piano performance, featuring both original compositions and some of his favorite classical pieces.
In the above video, Yoshiki is concluding one of his own compositions before segueing into a passage from Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake. Please Enjoy!
Yoshiki will be playing two nights with the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra at Carnegie Hall in January 2017. Visit This Link for tickets and more information!
Photo By Gail
Oh, there is just so much to say about this Obey Mozart poster, which I spotted on Bowery near Spring Street over the weekend. First of all, the poster was not designed by artist Shepard Fairey, although it was sanctioned by him. The design is a knock off of the poster you see below:
This Obey Thoven (Beethoven) poster was designed by New York Ad Agency Eyeball for classical radio station WQXR’s Beethoven Appreciation Month, which runs throughout November 2013. Oh, the cleverness!
