Record Label: Rhino/Smash
Genre:
Band Link:
Buy on Amazon.com

There are so many different types of classical compilations out there that someone will come up with new ways to sell classical music to the general public. This compilation was purposely made to put people to sleezzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Oh sorry dosed off for a second. So yeah, this Cd was purposely made for people with sleeping disorders and that have a hard time falling asleep. They even have on the back of the CD case: “Not to be listened to while driving!” I just find that very funny. Either they did that as a joke or they are covering their asses with potential lawsuits. I wonder if they should have put a disclaimer on the album cover, don’t listen to while working…You might get your ass fired for sleeping on the job!

There was a study done by the National Institute of Health and the results were published as “Music Improves Sleep Quality in Older Adults” (Journal of Advanced Nursing, 49 (3), February 2005, p.234-244). The NIH study found out that classical and soothing music resulted in significantly better sleep quality, better perceived sleep quality, longer sleep duration, etc. So this compilation is about 120 minutes long, with selected works by Vivaldi, Vaughn Williams, Beethoven, Puccini, Mozart, Bach, Tchaikovsky and more.

The reason why I wanted to hear Bedtime Beats was because I used to listen to classical and film scores to bed for about 8 years. I’d put my walkman (remember those??) or Cd player on, find a comfortable spot where my head isn’t getting annoyed by the headphones and fall asleep within the first 5 songs. You sleep a lot faster and better. I kind of stopped doing this because I’d wake up with my ears pounding in pain. I guess I would move around & lay awkward and have the headphones out of whack. I didn’t want to play it over the stereo because sometimes classical gets super quiet, and then the next song is this loud orchestral piece. Yeah it’s not fun waking up in the middle of night when “O’Fortuna” gets really loud and you think King Arthur is riding through your bedroom. That’s an Excalibur reference for you young whipper snappers out there! That’s why this compilation is so good, because all the songs are in the same tempo range (40-60 BPM). So you won’t have sudden burst of loud music to interrupt your sleeping.

I haven’t heard a lot of these compositions before so it was nice to listen to the beautiful music going to sleep. I tried to listen to the album when going to bed but only got around the 4th or 5th song and I was down for the count. The first disc starts off with Vivaldi, and then goes into Ravel. I really liked the Vaughn Williams track “Fantasia on Greensleeves.” I’ve heard that one before but can’t figure out where. Obviously, you can’t have a classical album without two great composers like Mozart and Beethoven. They are featured on both discs of the compilation. Bach and Tchaikovsky open up the second disc. Mozart’s “Elvira Madigan” is showcased on the second disc and is probably one of the more well-known tracks on the album. Well the next song is quite famous as well and that is Chopin’s “Nocturne in E Flat Major.” Other tracks I liked on the second disc were “Harpsichord Concerto in F Minor” by Bach, “The Swan” by Saint-Saens and “Piano Sonata No. 14” (Moonlight Sonata) by Beethoven.

If you are having a hard time sleeping at night and want to sleep better, than Bedtime Beats is something you should get because it’s a great classical compilation.

Bottom Line: An excellent classical compilation that will make you fall aslezZzZzZzZzZzZzZ
Notable Tracks: I like the tracks from Vaughn Williams, Beethoven, Mozart, Debussy, Chopin, Bach and Faure
Overall Rating: