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Mood Music journal spread

Mood Music that Moves Me- Playlists of Songs & Pieces to Inspire the Spirit

Nothing sets the mood like the right music!

Tastes vary, but the exploration of music that moves us is full of delightful discoveries that become lifelong memories.

As a choreographer, teaching artist and coach, music, songs, and playlists are a huge part of my life, my data streaming, and WiFi usage as I disc jockey sessions in real time and build up my library of music with which I resonate.

Autumn Migration – Notebook Switch & Mood Music video on YouTube (playlists 05:50)

With constantly changing technologies, this sort of data management is not necessarily easy, so I’ve found it helpful to keep logs of songs, pieces of music, and playlists that I want to refer to, many which I return to again and again. This collection of playlists are on two different streaming services, Spotify (to which I used to be a subscriber) and YouTube (where I currently subscribe), but can be used as a reference to find and listen to pieces of music elsewhere such as on iTunes, CD or other disc, even borrow from the library.

Some of these collections are analog, like lists I keep in my dance notebooks and journals such as the one in the photo above that features a recent sampling and which I will link below.

Contents hide
Musical Moods
Dance & Mindful Movement
Elements
Earth
Water
Fire
Air
Seasons & Holidays
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter
Times & Places
Story Telling
Cinderella
Hansel & Gretel
Sleeping Beauty
Little Red Riding Hood
The Nutcracker
Movements of Ballet & Dance
Sink/Bend – Plier
Rise – Relever
Stretch – Étendre
Glide – Glisser
Jump – Sauter
Dart – Élancer
Turn – Tourner
Emotions
Questions for Reflection
Resources for Further Exploration
Mood Music spread in Blythe’s Bullet Journal, collecting playlists by theme

Musical Moods

Themes, impulses, settings & contexts for my collections include:

Dance & Mindful Movement

Classes, improvisation, choreography, play and concentration.

Elements

Earth, Water, Fire, and Air are the major “proto” elements whose qualities can provide rich impulses for emotional and movement quality exploration:

Earth

Water

Fire

Air

Seasons & Holidays

Changes of weather and lifestyle as the wheel of the year turns can be a wonderful point of connection:

Spring

Summer

Autumn

Winter

Times & Places

Story Telling

Classic fairytales, ballet stories, musicals & theatre.

Cinderella

Hansel & Gretel

Sleeping Beauty

Little Red Riding Hood

The Nutcracker

A few favorite collections of poetry

Movements of Ballet & Dance

Sink/Bend – Plier

Rise – Relever

Stretch – Étendre

Glide – Glisser

Jump – Sauter

Dart – Élancer

Turn – Tourner

Emotions

Questions for Reflection

  • What pieces of music move you?
  • What are you moved to write or create?
  • How may I support your creativity?

Resources for Further Exploration

  • Spring Flings & Bright Things: a Bucket List of Fresh, Joyful Seasonal Experiences Being a (late) spring baby myself, I’ve always been especially drawn to the season, the themes of new life, rebirth, emergence, vitality, fertility, the increasing warmth and light, and joy! From the first early blossoms and rays of Sun leading up to the Spring Equinox, to the long, bright days of the Summer Solstice, I do my best to make the most of this richly potent season of growth and development.
  • Summer Fun in or out of the Sun: a Bucket List of Hot-Weather Hits Warmer weather lends itself to many activities I enjoy, such as time outdoors, bicycling, picnicking, and eating fresh produce. I try to seize the sunny fleeting days wherever I can and not miss out on my favorite bits before they’re gone again. Less decoration and dressing up, more dressing down, decluttering, deep-cleaning, taking in the natural beauty. Here is a collection of resources and activities that might provide a jumping-off point for your own longer-day adventures.
  • Autumn Equinox Magic – Rituals to Romance the Transition from Summer to Fall Seasonal rituals help me celebrate each transition, acknowledge how I’ve learned and grown and what it’s time to let go. Today is the day before the autumn equinox if you’re here in real time, a great time to start your ritual, or you can take inspiration anytime. September in Cologne sees the earliest leaves changing from green to yellow, the dry crunch underfoot, nuts and berries aplenty even in the heart of the city. Outside my door hazelnuts are falling onto the cobblestones, cars rolling over pop them open and the pigeons gorge themselves.
  • Building Momentum by Seizing the Back-to-School Mood: Ambiance, Supplies & Action Living based in a temperate climate like I do in Cologne, Germany, as soon as I feel the first chill in the air and sight a colored leaf or Back-to-School sale, I feel a surge of energy, motivation, and curiosity. Whether we currently find ourselves in an academic environment or not, this time of year is an opportunity we all can seize if it suits us, to invigorate our inspiration to create and grow.
  • Winter Wonders & Warmers: a Bucket List for Dark but Festive Times / Solstice – Return of the Light The stark, bleak, dreary days are here in Cologne and strings of lights, candles, treats, and traditions help to warm the cold of winter. It can be a difficult time for many reasons, so be gentle with yourself and make exquisite self-care and kindness for self and others a priority. As the longest night passes and the days begin to grow longer, so can our hope, clarity, and vision.
  • Be Buoyant like a Butterfly – Flights of Fancy – Airy Inspiration Roundup Light as a feather, fluttering in springtime and summer, having had encounters with butterflies in just about every place I have been, I always feel blessed by their gentle presence. Butterfly, Schmetterling, Farfalle, Papillon…I love their many names, their movements, the science and the mystery behind their lifecycles. Beloveds come to mind as a butterfly flits by, and art, literature, poetry, music, and movement all help me embody the qualities of the butterflies I marvel at, in this article I share these as well as many more flights of fancy and airy inspirations to delight.
  • Seaside, Oceanic & Watery Inspirations – Dance, Yoga, Music, Poetry & Creativity Though watery ocean, lake, river, and rain concepts can ignite the imagination yearlong, I find them particularly fun in the warmer months, for children’s and all-ages dance, yoga, meditation and visualization, poetic and artistic inspiration. This is a (growing, dynamic, never comprehensive) collection of resources I personally treasure and love to share as a teaching artist but may also be useful to families with children, other creatives, or to delight your own inner artist child.
  • Jolly Roger July & a Piratical Summer – being freedom, treasure & adventure in treacherous times I may not want a life on the open sea myself, but I was raised on sailing and pirate stories and appreciate the ethos of freedom, treasure, and adventure. What better time to embark on a fantastical journey of imagination than summer?
  • Creative Ballet Port de Bras – Arm Artistry Exploring Nature has many mindful movement explorations

The best way to keep up-to-date on everything I’m coaching, teaching, creating and sharing about as well as my favorite work from other creators is to subscribe to my email newsletter. Would love to be connected to you there, on social media, online or in-person.

Thanks for reading and moving together in spirit or in fact. Take care of yourself, pay attention, and hope to see you again.

Blythe Stephens, MFA & Bliss Catalyst
they/them or she/her
Creator of A Blythe Coach @ablythecoach
helping multi-passionate creatives dance through their difficulties,
taking leaps of faith into fulfillment through coaching, yoga & dance education

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