Recommended easy listening. Relaxing, soothing background music.

serenityHirohashi Makiko

Makiko Hirohashi: Serenity

When it comes to Japanese healing music composers, this is the person: Makiko Hirohashi.

She belongs to the Biosic Environmental Music Laboratory and has produced many works of this kind of healing music.

She is a leading figure in the easy-listening piano genre.

Tufted puffinHakasé Tarō

Taro Hakase - Etupirka (OFFICIAL)

A beautiful instrumental piece inspired by the image of an auk swooping through the sky.

Taro Hakase’s emotionally rich violin weaves a grand melody that brilliantly captures the breath of nature and the pulse of life.

It was also used as the ending theme for the MBS/TBS program Jonetsu Tairiku, leaving a deep impression on many listeners.

The piece is notable for its structure: it begins in the calm of morning and unfolds as if depicting powerful, soaring wingbeats.

It’s a song to listen to when you’re about to take a new step forward or when you need courage.

Black Orpheus

Black Orpheus [Orfeu Negro]

This song, for instance, is surely what everyone imagines when they think of easy listening.

The restrained yet properly engaging piano is a thoroughgoing display of craftsmanship, deliberately arranged so it never gets in the way.

It’s perfect to put on when you want to concentrate, like when studying for exams.

Milonga del ÁngelAstor Piazzolla（Astor Piazzolla）

Astor Piazzolla-Milonga del Ángel

This piece is so well-crafted that it wouldn’t be out of place in an Italian mafia film.

In fact, it might already have been used in a famous movie, but with my lack of study and limited knowledge, I can’t say for sure.

That said, there’s no doubt that it’s a masterpiece and a wonderful song.

Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My HeadB.J. Thomas (B・J・Tomasu)

Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head / B.J. Thomas

This song is also very famous, and I think everyone remembers that scene from the movie.

Even though I don’t remember the scenes in the middle, I only remember the famous scene where he dances with an umbrella when this song plays.

Perhaps a film can be called a masterpiece if many people remember even just a single scene from it.

Angel’s SerenadePōru Mōria

Angel's Serenade Paul Mauriat La chanson pour Anna Paul Mauriat

It’s a masterpiece by Paul Mauriat.

He has so many signature tunes that it’s impossible to choose just one, but this love song—which sounds like a first love, or perhaps a last—truly is timeless.

Played softly, it never intrudes; listened to closely, its melody moves you.

It’s the very model of easy listening.

Gymnopédie No. 1Erik Satie

Nobuyuki Tsujii – Erik Satie: Gymnopedies

Erik Satie’s masterpiece Gymnopédie No.

1 is a gentle, beautiful piano work that feels like a soothing spell.

Within its unhurried flow, a wistful yet warm melody cuts through the silence and resonates deeply with the listener.

The slightly melancholic harmonies spin out a relaxed sense of time, as if making you forget the bustle of everyday life.

It’s perfect for calming the mind on a quiet, long night—why not indulge in a brief escape from reality while listening to this piece?