Music to Grieve To doesn’t always have to be sad - in fact - Music to Grieve To can be anything you want it to be. The whole point of this - for me anyway - is that music makes life better - and when you’re grieving - having something that can make the slightest difference - is worth it.
One of the core ideas behind this playlist is that grief is a lonely experience - while siblings, families, close friends etc can share a semblance of what it is to lose a loved one - each person’s grief is going to be unique. It’s the times when you’re on your own - thinking of the person you loved - that grief can hit the hardest.
Sad music can help at this point - it creates empathy in the listener and helps you feel more connected to society - but I love how Tommi describes his experience. Like me he lost his dad at a similar stage in life - not too early and not unexpectedly - we both had great respect for and a great relationship with our fathers. Likewise, music played a huge part in our relationships - but here - instead of listening to their shared music and feeling sad - it’s wonderful to see how Tommi uses those shared experiences to evoke memories that make him feel good.
And while I know that not everybody has this - and that there are people who have shared musical experiences that aren’t exactly positive - if you do have a song that you shared with a loved one - go find it and put it on - you may be pleasantly surprised with how good it can feel.
As for this particular track - it’s just gotta feel good to know that when your dad was listening to this song - he was thinking of you…
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About the Curator - Andrew McCluskey
The first visual memory I have is that of the white upright piano in Singapore, Hell and the Dark Forces lived at the bottom, Heaven and the Angels at the top, they would play battles through my fingers and I was hooked.
As a psychology graduate I studied how sound affects human performance.
As a musician I compose instrumental music that stimulates your brain but doesn't mess with your language centers, leaving you free to be creative and brilliant without distraction.
As a curator I research how music can improve your life and create flow - I can tell you what music to listen to when studying for a test and why listening to sad music can make you feel better.
As the founder of musicto I’m on a mission to inspire a global audience of music lovers and artists through the development of people powered playlists.
Latest Posts
A Life in Full Color (song for Louis) – Gerhardt
25 September 2021
Why write a song reflecting on the suicide of a beloved friend? Why send it out into the world? What purpose does that serve? Ever since Gerhardt reached out and sent me this beautiful track, I’ve been reflecting on those questions – and while I don’t have an answer, I have an idea of one…
A Further Look at Loss – Andrew Wasylyk
13 April 2021
I was feeling sad – and I know why, but damn it’s so hard at times.
I’ve sat and watched as circumstance came in and deconstructed my defences one by one – constant pain leading to lack of sleep to lack of writing to lack of self care to lack of confidence to lack of hope to – STOP!
Paralysed – The Staves
31 March 2021
There’s this idea in life that just because you know a thing it makes it easier to deal with.
Like sitting down with a therapist, driving through your history until you find the behavior that causes you, many years later, to run away from connection or drink too much or insist on cleaning everything 3 times.
Andrew McCluskey
The first visual memory I have is that of the white upright piano in Singapore, Hell and the Dark Forces lived at the bottom, Heaven and the Angels at the top, they would play battles through my fingers and I was hooked.
As a psychology graduate I studied how sound affects human performance.
As a musician I compose instrumental music that stimulates your brain but doesn't mess with your language centers, leaving you free to be creative and brilliant without distraction.
As a curator I research how music can improve your life and create flow - I can tell you what music to listen to when studying for a test and why listening to sad music can make you feel better.
As the founder of musicto I’m on a mission to build a global creator community that collaborates through music. You can learn more about our community here.