Music for Mindfulness: Reflections

by Benedict Blythe

https://soundcloud.com/mr-g-hemmings/music-for-mindfullness-episode-29-reflections

Welcome to the twenty ninth podcast of music for mindfulness. In this series, we will be trying to choose music to help soothe the soul and stimulate the mind in these times of trouble.

All tracks and albums featured will be added to the PGS Music for Mindfulness playlists on Spotify and Apple Music: please click on the accompanying links for further information.

We have reached a certain time in the year during which we all go through a period of reflection. Whether this is about mental health, our lives or our educations, this time of year seems to amalgamate all the chaos in our lives into a period of this reflection. It is at times like these, when music is the most powerful and thought provoking. 

In this episode of music for mindfulness, I will be exploring with you, music that is written about reflections in water. I will introduce some ideas about why this music is so visually effective, but primarily, I will allow the music to play and let your imagination take you out the present, into another world. Let the tranquility take priority, and treat this as a time to reflect and be mindful. 

We will be starting today's episode, with a piece of music by the well known choral composer OLA GJEILO , called ‘Reflections’. This piece was written by GJEILO for his 2016 album, simply titled OLA GJJEILO and has gained great popularity ever since its release.

Whilst listening to the piece, try to pay attention to where it transports you visually and spatially. For me, the minimal ascending movement of the piano, coupled with the stillness of the strings, take me to the edge of a small rural lake, watching the ripples in the water distort the crystal clear mirroring of the sky, intense green trees and pure white flowers upon the water edge. The contrast created by the regular pauses in the music, allow for moments of stillness, where the water remains flat, emphasising the mesmerizing nature of water. 

This is OLA GJEILO’s ‘Reflections’:

 Pretty, isn’t it? 

Hopefully you can now see the concept of movement vs stillness, and how GJEILO creates this movement in the music, a theme we shall see occurring later. 

 The Next Piece which I would like to play, uses similar techniques to GJEILO in order to create the image of water. The piece Reflets dans L’eau (or reflections in the water) by DEBUSSY and being of the impressionist period, this piece of music makes heavy use of atonality and unconventional harmonic movement to create interesting colours in the music. Furthemore, DEBUSSY too has made use of a contrast between the unpredictable movement of the water, like flowing streams, and also the moments of peace and static motion. It seems to transport you to a beautiful french water garden, just as much as the edge of a tranquil lake due to its focus on the nature of water. 

Again, while you listen, try to imagine where it takes you and imagine what the water is doing?

 

Listening to that piece, you can really imagine the beauty of the water, painting the reflections that are seen in it. The pianist Marc Andre Hamelin plays it with a fantastic level of expression, the movement between musical ideas is mesmerising and seemless.  

 Now for a little change in style. Now we have covered why these pieces of music translate to water in the way that they do, perhaps we can explore if these techniques to create the idea of reflection and water have been applied in a totally contrasting style. I shall now be playing a short extract from the beginning of ‘I’ll be your mirror’ by the VELVET UNDERGROUND. You will notice how the guitar in this introduction plays a melody that is reminiscent of the way that both GJEILO and DEBUSSY write about reflections and water, and as a result, can seem to paint a similar image and similar colours. 

  

Unfortunately, it is now time for us to end this rather short episode of Music for Mindfulness, however, I hope that you are able to go away today with an understanding of why music about water works the way that it does. But mainly, I hope that you have benefitted from the chance to listen to some fantastic music and be transported to some tranquil spaces. 

 I shall finish the episode by playing a few minutes of the piece played at the beginning of the episode called Dell Quay Sunset, in which some similar techniques to create tranquility and movement are used. I hope it creates a peaceful atmosphere while you carry on reflecting and relaxing.

 Music used in this episode:

 

• Reflections : GJEILO
• Dell Quay Sunset: BLYTHE - backing music
• I'll be your mirror : VELVET UNDERGROUND - excerpt
• Reflets dans l’eau : DEBUSSY