While it may not be new to many people that music is known to have a relaxing effect and has been used successfully to reduce and release tension, what is interesting, as reported in Alternative Therapies, is that slow and sedative music, with a specific reference to Baroque music styles, does result in increased relaxation. Music with simple, repetitive rhythms, low pitches and slow tempos using strings and no percussion instruments does help to reduce stressful physiological responses. LUMIERE, Baroque Music for Relaxation by Stephanie Bennett offers Baroque music originally written for a variety of instrumentations (orchestral works, keyboard works, operas, etc.), which Stephanie has elegantly rearranged for harp along with accompanying acoustic instruments. This is classical music with a light, modern touch, designed for relaxation, healing and pure enjoyment.

FROM THE MUSICIAN:

Bach and Handel are two of my favorite composers of all time. Handel holds a special place in my heart and in my history. As a teenager, I performed Handel’s Harp Concerto in Bb with my high school orchestra, and I also performed it in the audition that won me a full tuition scholarship to the University of Michigan School of Music, where I went on to major in harp performance.

Recorders and wooden flutes have a wonderful unpretentious innocence. Their use dates from the Middle Ages through the Baroque era and they speak with such clarity and simplicity. They are featured on ‘Peace’ and on ‘Air’. Cellos convey a delicious warmth and depth. I used cello not only for the bass lines of a few pieces, but also featured it on the melody of ‘Largo from Xerxes’.

The Baroque era in Western music has long been a particular favorite of mine. The music can express a range of scenarios from grandiose to intimate; and a range of emotions from joyous and lighthearted, to poignant, to affectionate, to serenely meditative. It’s always elegant. It’s most often musically sophisticated, in a way that I’ve always found fascinating, like an elaborately embroidered tapestry full of intricate detail.

Some of my favorite Baroque music is thrillingly passionate and some is deeply mournful; but for the purposes of this recording, I selected only music that is inspiring and invigorating, yet relaxing and comforting, like a wonderful bowl of warm, nourishing soup on a cold day.
-- Stephanie Bennett