Our colleagues at WNYC's New Tech City are in the midst of "Bored and Brilliant," a week-long challenge to listeners to disconnect from their smart phones. Boredom, the theory goes, may not be such a bad thing in our hyper-connected world. Rather than constantly reaching for our phones when we're in an elevator, on the train, or waiting for a cab, perhaps we should create mental space for creativity and reflection.
Somewhat paradoxically, classical music can invite purposeful daydreaming (just as it can capture many other moods). Here are eight classical pieces that can be adapted to this purpose.
1. Satie's Gymnopedies and Gnossiennes
Long before Muzak, French composer Erik Satie (1866-1925) had the notion to compose "wallpaper music" – music meant to be absolutely ignored by the audience. The three Gymnopédies (1888), feature peculiarly expressive melodies over gently swaying backgrounds. Even more cryptic are the three Gnossiennes of 1890. Some historians consider Satie to be the forerunner of ambient classics like Brian Eno's "Music for Airports."
2. John Cage: In a Landscape
John Cage, the most avant-garde composer of the 20th century, took a gentler approach in this delicate piano piece of 1948. With its undulating figures and use of soft and sustain pedals, the music seems to suspend time.
3. Paul von Westhoff: Imitazione delle Campane (arr. by Christian Badzura)
Paul von Westhoff, a 17th-century German composer and favorite of Louis XIV, wrote odd music with floating, slightly mystical arpeggiations. The violinist Daniel Hope took up a modern arrangement of von Westhoff's brief Imitazione on his album "Spheres," offering a compact, three-minute zone-out.
4. J.S. Bach: Clavierbuchlein fur W F Bach, BWV 855a: Prelude in B Minor
J.S. Bach was probably far too busy for much daydreaming, and much of his vast output was composed either for religious or more workaday purposes. But some of his keyboard works have a lyrical, infinite quality, as with the Prelude in B minor. Listen to a piano transcription by Alexander Siloti.
5. Philip Glass: 'The Hours' soundtrack
Film scores by definition are designed to work at a subliminal level, creating atmosphere or underlining character motivations. The composer Philip Glass understands this all too well in "The Hours" (2002). The score conveys a magical sense of mood as it veers between a restful, ruminative quality and stormier passages.
6. Debussy: Rêverie
Debussy was the master of creating dream-like atmospheres in his piano works, particularly in Rêverie, as he builds a gently repetitive melody over the course of five minutes.
7. Arvo Pärt: Spiegel in Spiegel (Mirror in Mirror)
Estonian composer Arvo Pärt (b. 1935) is one of the most important practitioners of a style sometimes referred to as "holy minimalism," named for its austere harmonies and wistful melodic gestures. Try this 10-minute piece for cello (or violin) and piano.
8. Valentin Silvestrov: Der Bote (The Messenger)
Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov appears to summon ghosts from the past in Der Bote. An exercise in gentle nostalgia, the piece is scored for piano, synthesizer and strings, and becomes an evocative meditation using Mozartian themes.
With thanks to Jenny Houser for additional research.