Ask HN: What music do you listen to when programming?(or do you not?)

Subtle, not too emotional, harmonizing, complex, repetitive, no words I can understand.

Some examples

Tabla: Ustad Alla Rakha -Ustad Zakir Hussain Jugolbondhi (complex, listen on low): https://youtu.be/zcUZiuejt9g

* Ali Farka Toure (African, warm, joyful): https://youtu.be/qI_h49D1xo8

* chill hop: axian’s mixes do it for me https://youtu.be/hdmSovWFhig

* sometimes a pandora station seeded with Keith Jarred, bill evans.

* sometimes a pandora station seeded with Pugliese and Treilo because I’m learning Tango and those songs won’t memorize themselves. Plus they’re incredibly beautiful.

Video Game Music for Studying: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIKC2UBcyfT4y_zyJKQgsq...

Spotify sometimes but I usually fall back to https://musicforprogramming.net when I really need to focus.

I have a playlist that I've been working on for the last couple years[1]. It's mostly instrumental, and it's my pride and joy :) I listen to it every day for most of the day while working.

If you end up listening to it, feedback is welcome!

[1] https://open.spotify.com/user/124904258/playlist/7gOx724pPSe...

I usually have no music or distractions, but sometimes I like music.

I tend to need music without lyrics, or in a foreign language, or sometimes that is so familiar to me that I don't pay attention to the words.

Usually I can't have music for high-focus tasks. Talking, either, so I use a linux shell command to generate whitenoise sometimes, it sounds a bit like ocean waves:

alias whitenoise='play -q -c 2 -n synth brownnoise band -n 1600 1500 tremolo .1 30'

I don't code for work, but when I need to focus on what I am doing (excel, powerpoint etc) I use noisli.com (picking usually the rain soundtrack) or the noizio app on mac / iphone. I find easier to focus with these "noise" soundtracks (rain, train, river, cafe...) than with music/songs

I've been on a hip hop kick lately (Tyler the Creator, Vince Staples, Kendrick Lamar, and related Spotify recommendations). Usually lyrics are too distract me but for some reason, not with hip hop.

I listen to a lot of IDM. High energy instrumental music that keeps me alert and productive. This Pitchfork list is a great starting point if you want to get into the genre: https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/10011-the-50...

I also listen to a lot of jazz, but I don't have any specific recommendations there. My jazz usually comes from whatever Spotify's algorithms decide to throw at me.

I find that fairly fast and rhythmic, or 'spacey' instrumental or electronic music can help me get into a focused state, but I often turn it off after a while when I’m really into it. I particularly like psychedelic trance/goa, instrumental hip hop, or electronic video game/horror film music.

Some examples I've listened to a bunch while working: Trifonic, Govinda, Metaform, Hallucinogen, Shpongle, Blue Sky Black Death, Emancipator, SURVIVE, Trentemøller, Carbon Based Lifeforms.

I don't listen to any music when I code, or have any background noise at all, like a TV or radio playing.

At times I'll shut off my phones and email app and anything else that might distract me.

at work, I generally don't. It's more important for me to know what's being discussed around me.

At home, I don't either, though I generally have some sort of nonsense tv on.

I find I'm best "in the zone" for development while listening to electro-house or deep house. The genre lends itself to minimal lyrics (some of what I listen to might be in a foreign language, but even that which is in English is usually very 'shallow' and repetitive). Basically lots of deep bass thumping along at a reasonably consistent pace with a 'light' melody on top :)

I find any kind of music highly distracting while programming.

Melodic metal I know by note, sometimes I don't even notice it's there but it gives me a lot of background warmth: always Estatic Fear, Agalloch, Tristania, Empyrium, things like that. Sometimes with or immediately after caffeine intake, I'd like a bit of electronic stuff like Blusoul or Paul Oakenfold.

One of two things depending on my mood:

1. A Pandora station seeded with Moonlight Sonata. It plays calmer classical music, avoiding the more in-your-face classical like Bach's Toccata and Fugue. Sometimes plays modern stuff like Piano Guys. I frequently combine this with some rain noise from Noisli.

2. Classic Trance. Stuff like Paul Van Dyk - Words.

I generally avoid anything with lyrics. Lyrics are incredibly distracting.

For high-focus I reccomend rain.today (great site, btw). Great with noise isolation headphones.

For "mechanical" work, I prefer Metal: the faster, the better.

Silence if possible, but in the open office, whatever repetitive instrumental music I can get my hands on to drown out the damn noise.

I use brain.fm It helps me to focus.

Mostly Bach and Mozart these days. I used to listen to mixes from https://musicforprogramming.net but they don't stimulate me like they once used to.

I like music with hymns or mellow tones. Music I've been listening to a lot lately:

Moby Lindsey Stirling Solar Fields Imagine Dragons M83 The War on Drugs Gorkem Han Jr Tony Anderson Simon & Garfunkel

Definitely helps block out noise and gets me to focus.

Dubstep. Minimal lyrics and heavy bass tones speed up my typing as well as thought process... also drowns out the sales bros an aisle away in our "open office" environment.

I find vocals distracting so when I listen to music while working, it is either movie or video game soundtracks or classical music.

Mainly instrumental ambient house - also any Google Music playlist with both of the words "chill" and "hop" in it's title...

Godspeed You! Black Emperor - I find that it's stimulating without being distracting. Plus it has amazing soundscapes.

The Blade Runner soundtrack by Vangelis, of course.

I usually listen to music i already know well and like. It seems less distracting than discovering new tunes.

I prefer anything ambient by Trent Reznor; especially his tracklist for The Social Network.

LoFi Instrumental Hip-Hop on Spotify(there are a few playlists), always puts me in the flow zone.

LoFi hip hop beats generally. A good balance of punchy and relaxing.

Thrash metal, like Metallica or Anthrax. Nothing too dark though.

Iron Maiden and Classical Essentials playlist on Spotify.

I usually have Law and Order reruns playing in the background

Mostly Brian Eno + Celer on repeat :)

Anything that will drown noise :)

Hip hop instrumentals