As we collectively enter this strange and frightening phase of social and professional quarantine, music can act as a centering presence. A middle school teacher by day, I am gearing up to spend weeks at home, away from students and lesson planning, and likely isolated from most family and friends. While pondering this last night, I pieced together a simple playlist for myself and have decided to share it with others of you out there who might be homebound for the foreseeable future. Listen to it while you work, read, puzzle, cook, or clean. Listen to it as you smile or listen to it as you fret.
Like all playlists posted to this website, it is meant to be played straight through, unshuffled. Together, the songs build a short narrative, and thematically, you will see that the first half feels subdued to capture a wasting away, slothlike mood, but with help from The Beacon Sound Choir, the mood shifts to contentment. Matthew J. Rollin's outstanding One Day I Will Be Free is the serves as a final, joyous capstone. Let this song serve as your mantra for the next month.
Like you, I will try to find peace in these long, strange days. And if you feel lonely, know that your days do not need to be quiet.
Post photo credit: Allison Yoder
Featured artists: Motohiro Nakashima, Night Gestalt, C. Diab, Hammock, Gigi Masin, Jonny Nash, Slow Meadow, Sergio Diaz De Rojas, The Beacon Sound Choir, Masayoshi Fujita, Tomasz Bednarczyk, Matthew J. Rollin