Classical Study Music

Students, scholars . . . listen up — if revision is your quest, and knowledge is your grail, make sure your soundtrack keeps the old gray matter in tip-top shape. Pachelbel's "Canon in D" is a perfect accompaniment to reading Dickens, while Glenn Gould's interpretation of Bach's Goldberg Variations is more suited to contrasting Rilke to Spender, or, perhaps, reviewing RNA synthesis in mammalian cells. Fretwork's "Pavan," on the other hand, lends itself perfectly to Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War . . . Debate is great, so feel free to disagree with our study match-ups, as you head in learned fashion towards Next Steps.

As you get more comfortable with classical music in the background while you study, the farther afield you'll want to roam. Here's a hint: steer clear of big, instantly recognizable themes, such as the first movement of Beethoven's Symphony #5 (possibly the most famous first four notes in music). Instead, try a reflective dose of baroque oboe courtesy of the Ferenc Erkel Chamber Orchestra, or some Bach-boosted cello, as delivered by Yo-Yo Ma, and those elusive facts will be yours forever. The midnight oil is burning out, so stay sharp with a double-strength piano sonata, in Deep Cuts.

Interesting fact: cello music and lute music are particularly suited to study, since they are generally in the range of the human voice, which provides comfort on an unconscious level. Having said that, a studying session deep into the wee hours may occasionally require a pick-me-up, which is where Mozart's "Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major" comes in — if the caffeine doesn't work, an invigorating blast of Wolfgang Amadeus is sure to do the trick.

French Lit test tomorrow? Faced with a set of historical dates that needs rapid memorization? The last thing you need is to have, say, Megadeth or Anthrax blasting in the background when you're trying to conjugate irregular Latin verbs or memorize where the Actinide Series is on the periodic table. If you really need some study music, why not try classical? After all, it's supposed to make babies smarter – why not you? These tracks have been specially chosen to enhance your studies, not detract from them, so tune in, turn on and its a dead certainty that you're not going to drop out anytime soon.