So much music, so little time

I am currently reading David Jennings' excellent new book Net, Blogs and Rock 'n' Roll, which analyses how consumers discover music online. I'll provide my thoughts on this in a week or so when I've finished it. In the meantime, the book has got me thinking about my relationship to music and about how music and learning interact.

I have been keenly interested in music all my life. I played rock music in bands from between the ages of about 12 and 25, and for about five years taught guitar as a source of extra cash (my most famous pupil being the actress Greta Scacchi, then only 12). In the last ten years I have devoted a great deal of time to composing and recording music, mainly alone, sometimes with colleagues. So, why don't I listen to music more?

A lot of this has to do with how I work. I'm not out and about that much and, working from home, I don't commute. When I'm driving I do listen to CDs the whole time, but I don't do that much driving. When I'm travelling by train or plane I might take my iPod (complete with 3000 tracks) but I rarely use it. The reason is that I usually have reading and other work to do and I can't combine that with listening to music. It's the same in my office - I have a fantastic system with studio-quality monitors and headphones, I have my iPod connected to this and an account with LastFM. But again, I rarely take advantage of these options. I just can't concentrate when music's playing. It captures my attention immediately, I become captivated and, next thing I know, I'm picking up one of six guitars (I know, boys and their toys) and losing all interest in things e-learning.

I'm interested to know, who can really concentrate on work when they're listening to music? If they can, what sort of music are they listening to? I've heard the arguments made by accelerated learning enthusiasts that music aids learning, particularly music of the baroque variety. I know several trainers who routinely play baroque music during their courses. In Accelerated Learning for the 21st Century, Colin Rose cites research at UC Irvine's Center for Neurobiology of Learning and Memory in which three groups of students were given a standard IQ test. Before undertaking the test, one group listened to Mozart's Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major for ten minutes, the second group listened to a relaxation tape and the third spent the time in silence. The three groups scored 119, 111 and 110 respectively, a nine point gain from listening to Mozart. There's plenty more supportive evidence at New Horizons for Learning.

Now maybe I could load up my iPod with baroque music and play it while I work, but that wouldn't really be solving the problem. First off, I don't like baroque music. Secondly, how am I ever going to get through the 74 days of music that I know that I do like that iTunes tells me I already have set up and ready to go?