Classical Chill 2

You'll find no volcanic bursts of kettle drum nor thunderbolts of cymbal here — these pieces have been handpicked for their ability to slow the pulse and draw down the warm blanket of well-being that can occasionally get misplaced amid life's hectic shuffle. A couple of much-loved guitar compositions set the tone: Joaquín Rodrigo's "Adagio" from the Concierto de Aranjuez and Stanley Myers' "Cavatina" (the theme from The Deer Hunter). More soul-healing soundtrack music can be found among our Next Steps.

Where Mozart unlocks a highly effective dose of aural therapy with ivory keys ("Romance" from Piano Concerto No. 20 in D Minor) and Elgar looks to the human voice for his conversion of Percy Bysshe Shelley's "An Ariette for Music" into "In Moonlight", the great film score composer Ennio Morricone turns to woodwind, with the sublime "Gabriel's Oboe" from The Mission. Jay Ungar's 1982 waltz "Ashokan Farewell" makes wondrous use of the solo violin. Ever had your troubles eased by a pair of mandolins? No? Then go to Deep Cuts.

Great choral works can be simultaneously relaxing and uplifting, a perfect example being Morten Lauridsen's arrangement of "O Magnum Mysterium" featuring the Chamber Choir of Europe. On "Remember Me My Dear", from Mnemosyne, jazz saxophonist Jan Garbarek collaborates with male vocal quartet the Hilliard Ensemble to unique effect, while Zoltan Tokos and Bela Sztankovitz take on "Andante" from Antonio Vivaldi's Concerto for Two Mandolins RV 532.

According to a definition of our own devising, "classical chill" is the state a person can fully attain only once he or she has downloaded this second collection of outstanding, supremely restorative pieces of music. Scientific tests (yet to be verified — you'll just have to take our word for it) have shown that exposure to these compositions on a regular basis provides a level of relaxation equivalent to six weeks on a private Caribbean island, with a daily massage delivered by a Greek goddess, plus an endless supply of ambrosia, nectar, and chocolate chip ice cream. Enjoy.