Do you listen to music while you read?
This question may have been addressed here before, but I, as a person who loves both music and books, always find it interesting! And I would find it interesting to see how my readers would answer the question too!
Now, as nice as silence is, and it is nice now and then, I, for the most part, don't like it. My house is usually rockin' with all sorts of noise, from live guitar and drum playing going on downstairs, to World of Warcraft/Zoombies/Minecraft and/or other video games, to blaring TV shows, to blasting iPods hooked to speakers. Not to mention the general kid sounds that go with it all.
Thankfully, I don't mind all the ruckus (except for fighting noises on the video games... ugh) and this is what I'm usually reading too, if you can call that music.
But now and then, I find myself alone in the house, with the silence. Do you think I'll sit and read to the silence? Not likely. I enjoy background noise and will often turn on a Pandora station or some other playlist on the computer to keep me company. And it doesn't necessarily need to be instrumental either, but I do notice that songs with words will make me stop now and then to sing along. But for the most part, even that's okay.
Also thankfully, I can read while the TV is on in the same room if someone else is watching it, but if I'm watching it and I try to read during commercials, yeah, that usually doesn't work so well.
So, what about you? Do you listen to music while reading? Or do you need the silence?
I listen to music when reading to drown out the other noise... Sometimes it gets to be too much and I can't concentrate with all the commotion.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean about noise. I grew up in a small house with 2 younger brothers so reading with a lot of it was just life.
ReplyDeleteI do listen to music when I read, most of the time anyway. Often I'll listen to one particular song a lot when reading a book to the point that I associate that song with that book.
When I was younger I could read no matter what was going on around me - music on, parents fighting, kids screaming at recess - I could block it all out.
ReplyDeleteAs an adult, I'm much more easily distracted. I really prefer quiet now, because music, the tv, etc. keeps drawing away my attention. I miss my single-mindedness as a child!
No freaking way! I can not listen to music while I'm reading it's too distracting and invokes emotions that don't go with the scene I'm reading. Drives me nuts! I can read while the TV is on but not very well.
ReplyDeleteI love but very seldom experience complete quiet. During those very few times my house is empty and quiet, I can sit all day and read...and absolutely no tv or music, please. I'm easily distracted and my brain is overstimulated by all the noise.
ReplyDeleteI prefer the quiet, but I have learned to be able to write while listening to music, but so much depends on what I am reading and how much concentration or atmosphere it requires. usually I tune out while reading so alarms could be going off if it is a really good read.
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I typically don't read with music, but I can with music like Enya or soundtracks. I can't read with music lyrics. I start to think of the lyrics and not the book.
ReplyDeleteWow! It looks most of you need/like/enjoy to read to quietness. Very interesting! Hopefully quiet isn't too hard to find at your houses! :)
ReplyDeleteI really prefer to read in silence. Or birdsong. I've gotten used to reading with background noise of the home- kids playing, tv on, etc. but background music for me is nice to do chores to, not to read with.
ReplyDeleteI prefer silence to read. Meaning that, if I'm home alone and have some reading time, I will not turn anything else on. That said, I can read through most anything!
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