Is classical music relaxing?

[comme_le_vent]

it seems to me, that for alot of people - the prime virtue of classical music is that it is 'relaxing', the top classical radio station in this country's slogan is 'relax....with classic fm'.
what are your thoughts about this?

[Noah]

The top classical radio station in this country is BBC Radio 3.

[comme_le_vent]

i was talking about the quantity of listeners, not quality of programming.

[faulty_damper]

Relaxing?  I hate Mozart for that very reason!  Okay, that that very reason... I hate Mozart.  Period.  Okay, maybe not hate.  But severely dislike.  A lot.

Is it relaxing?  No.  It's not.  At least not the kind of "classical" I consider to be "classical" which really isn't classified as "classical".

You mean classical as in "classical" or "classical" as in everything before the 20th century?

I hate "classical" if it's relaxing.  It's boring.

[comme_le_vent]

i mean classical(hate the word) as in all 'serious' music, like bach mozart beethoven chopin rachmaninov through to philip glass john williams and other contemporaries.

i should maybe start a new thread about the definition of classical music, i dont even know exactly what it means myself.

[Shagdac]

Comme....I think I understand what you are asking. Alot of people (not usually classical pianists!) think classical music is "boring", it is so different that the typical music listened to by many these days. Alot of my friends tease me about playing "elevator music"....how boring can you get! However there are so many pieces of classical music that are fast, flightly, loud, and powerful....anything but relaxing. I personally do find it soothing. My Mother used to tell me when I was a little girl that she could tell what kind of day I had a school,
if I came home and pounded out something like Rach Prelude in C# minor...she knew I had been frustrated by something. If I came home and played something like Moonlight Sonata, I was usually sad, The Entertainer, I was feeling happy. I still to some degree to this day will play pieces that are characteristic to my mood. I find the pure pleasure of playing to be relaxing, the phsyical actual playing to be soothing, and also exciting at times.  One of my favorite composers is Gottschalk, and I certainly wouldn't classify Le Banjo or L' Union as "relaxing"....to play them is exciting, uplifting. I think any type of music can be relaxing. The rock song "Open Arms"...the first part of "Stairway to Heaven". I think that the general impression that classical music is "relaxing" is a misconception, it can be, but it also can be as exciting as other types. Hope this makes sense.

shag

[comme_le_vent]

yeah, i actually listen to a great variety of music - including jazz rock and pop.
but the reason for this thread was to talk about why alot of people think classical music is more relaxing, and if it is intrinsically relaxing at all.
to me - i very rarely wish to be relaxed by music - sometimes i wish to be soothed by beauty - but relaxing implies some sort of closing down of the brain, to me this kind of music just awakens my brain and renews my sense of conciousness - the polar opposite of relaxing me into a sleep like state.

also more evidence  - the most polular classical cds seem to be of the 'most relaxing classical music' mould.
and i find this rather annoying.  

[steinwaymodeld]

As a kind of category of music dominated for more than 300 years

I would say it has every emotion you can find, music is life.

If it's just 'relaxing', it's not music. It's therapy.

[steveolongfingers]

No one in their right mind can say Berlioz Symphony Fantasique is relaxing, overall i find it quite disturbing.  Some of Beethoven's Symphonys (esspecially the odd ones), the second movement to the 9th  for example,  have an umph to them, but are definetely not relaxing.  They always keep me on the edge of my seat.  

[Motrax]

Some Chopin Waltzes are nice things I can just sit back and relax to, but to me classical music is about letting the emotions of a piece take over your own emotions.

I also can't stand the "relax to classical" slogans used by more than just one radio station. And the CD series "the most relaxing classical music" (or whatever it's called) really annoys me.

Oh well.