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Switch off with tranquil classical melodies

Niall Breslin brings you calming classical music to help you release the stresses of the day, recharge and prepare to rest.

Three hours of calming classical music to help you release the stresses of the day, recharge and prepare to rest - presented by Irish musician and mindfulness expert Niall Breslin.

This episode features a rich blend of pieces from the likes of Hannah Peel, Alexis Ffrench and Ralph Vaughan Williams. We Press Pause with meditation teacher Michael James Wong and we discover some essential Wind Down Wisdom from science podcaster Caroline Steel on how gentle movement can help you prepare for a restful night.

25 days left to listen

3 hours

Music Played

  • Johann Sebastian Bach

    Organ Sonata no.4 BWV.528 (2nd mvt)

    Performer: Víkingur Ólafsson.
    • UME - Global Clearing House.
  • Evelyn Glennie

    Light in Darkness

    Performer: Evelyn Glennie.
    • RCA Red Seal.
  • Eleanor Daley

    Upon Your Heart

    Choir: Pembroke College Girls' Choir. Choir: Pembroke College Chapel Choir. Conductor: Anna Lapwood.
    • Signum Classics.
  • Eydís Evensen

    Fyrir Mikael

    • XXIM Records.
  • Richard Casey

    Farewell To Stromness

    • ASC Records.
  • Edvard Grieg

    Holberg Suite Op 40 (4th mvt, Air)

    Orchestra: BBC National Orchestra of Wales. Conductor: Tadaaki Otaka.
  • Antonín Dvořák

    Romantic Piece No 4, Op 75

    Performer: Renaud Capuçon. Performer: Khatia Buniatishvili.
    • Erato/Warner Classics.
  • Sergey Rachmaninov

    Cello Sonata in G minor, Op 19 (3rd mvt)

    Performer: Gautier Capuçon. Performer: Yuja Wang.
    • Deutsche Grammophon (DG).
  • Ralph Vaughan Williams

    The Lark Ascending

    Performer: Tasmin Little. Orchestra: BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. Conductor: Sir Andrew Davis.
    • Chandos.
  • Trad.

    We Shall Walk Through the Valley in Peace

    Music Arranger: Undine Smith Moore. Choir: VocalEssence Chorus. Conductor: Philip Brunelle.
    • CLARION.
  • Lara Somogyi

    lodges

    • Mercury Classics.
  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    Piano Concerto No 2 in B flat major (2nd mvt)

    Performer: Jean‐Efflam Bavouzet. Orchestra: Manchester Camerata. Conductor: Gábor Takács‐Nagy.
    • Chandos.
  • Arthur Bliss

    Serenade on the Lake (Kenilworth)

    Performer: Black Dyke Band. Conductor: John Wilson.
    • Chandos Records Limited.
  • Hannah Peel

    The Unfolding

    Singer: Victoria Oruwari. Orchestra: Paraorchestra. Conductor: Charles Hazlewood.
    • Real World.
  • John Ireland

    The Holy boy, arr. orchestra [orig no.3 of "4 preludes"]

    Orchestra: BBC Concert Orchestra. Conductor: David Hill.
    • GBBBC.
  • Christopher Tin

    The Saddest Noise (Choral Edition)

    Choir: VOCES8. Conductor: Barnaby Smith.
    • Universal Music Classics.
  • Ollie Jones

    Blurred Horizon

    Performer: Ollie Jones.
  • John Dowland

    Fantasia in G major P.1

    Performer: Sean Shibe.
    • Delphian.
  • Cécile Chaminade

    Solitude, Op 127

    Performer: Mark Viner.
    • Brilliant Classics Licensing BV.
  • Poppy Ackroyd

    Hanover Birds

    • The Birdsong Project.
  • Charles Villiers Stanford

    The Blue Bird

    Singer: Bethany Partridge. Choir: National Youth Choir. Director: Christopher Hann.
    • National Youth Choirs of Great Britain.
  • David Bowie

    Heroes

    Composer: Brian Eno. Performer: David Le Page. Orchestra: Orchestra of the Swan. Conductor: Bruce O’Neil.
    • Signum Records.
  • Ole Bull

    Solitude on the Mountain

    Orchestra: Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
  • Alexis Ffrench

    Bluebird

    • Sony Classical.
  • Cecilia McDowall

    Pavane

    Conductor: George Vass.
    • Dutton Epoch.
  • Johannes Brahms

    Intermezzo in A major (6 Pieces Op.118)

    Performer: Eric Lu.
  • Yiruma

    River Flows in You

    Performer: HAUSER. Orchestra: London Symphony Orchestra. Conductor: Robert Ziegler.
    • Sony Classical.
  • Max Richter

    Vladimir's Blues

    • Universal Music Operations Ltd.
  • Samuel Coleridge‐Taylor

    Suite for Violin and Piano (2nd mvmt, Cavatina)

    Performer: Randall Goosby. Performer: Zhu Wang.
    • Decca Music Group Ltd..
  • Jon Lord

    Evening Song

    Performer: Fiona Paterson. Performer: David Pigott. Performer: Timothy Nicholson. Performer: Thelma Handy. Orchestra: Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. Conductor: Clark Rundell.
    • Avie.
  • Nils Frahm

    The Dane

    • Erased Tapes.
  • William Cornysh

    Ave Maria, mater Dei

    Choir: The Gesualdo Six. Conductor: Owain Park.
    • Hyperion.
  • Belle Chen

    And It Rains

    • Platoon.

Broadcasts

  • Sat 9 Nov 202418:00
  • Fri 22 Nov 202418:00
  • Wed 11 Dec 202418:00
  • Boxing Day 202418:00
  • Mon 13 Jan 202518:00
  • Mon 10 Mar 202518:00
  • Sat 31 May 202518:00
  • Sunday17:00