In most yoga classes, music will be offered as a way of enhancing the experience. While some might say that it detracts from concentration, I find personally that the right playlist can have positive effects. An upbeat tempo during a particularly challenging sequence can be what gives you the extra boost to power through. On the other hand, a slow, mellow beat can make you feel relaxed and more receptive to a pose. As always, there's a time and a place for music but when considering a playlist here's what's most important:
Is it appropriate? Sure, there are songs with swear language that we all know and love but there might be some students who are NOT okay with it.
Does it match the mood? Where would you most likely place a mellow song in a class, for instance? Conversely, would it be a good idea to play a song with heavy bass in Savasana?
Does this enhance the experience? If you are teaching a class with lots of cuing, then music might actually just be background noise that distracts students from what you are saying.
Is it too loud/loud enough? Be sure to arrive early enough to test the speakers in the yoga room. Throughout the class, read the room. If students are looking at you like they might not have heard what you said, try turning it down.
Tips for music in a virtual class:
I'll be honest, I'm trying to figure that out as well so if you have tips for me, please let me know! What I've learned is that it does NOT work well to play music from your computer while you are teaching as it competes with your voice. The music does this weird thing where it fades in and out and is just overall distracting. I send out a link to my playlist that I've created on Spotify with the link for class. That way, students can choose whether or not to listen to music. Be sure to cue when to start the music either with the class link or when you're starting the class.
Personally, I LOVE making a playlist. I use Spotify and they have a great playlist that is created for me based off of what I listen to called "Discover Weekly." It refreshes with new music every Monday so throughout my week I'll listen to the playlist and save the songs that I like. Sometimes I'll just "heart" the song to save or for late or I'll create a new playlist and place them there.
When I was teaching in a studio, instead of creating a playlist weekly or monthly, I would just put an artist or a song on "Radio" and see what would play. That can be a hit-or-miss method but when it hits right, it hits so good! Since teaching virtually, I will make a playlist of the month that I will send out with each invite. Now I have a library of playlists to choose from so sometimes I'll pull from other playlist depending on the style of class that I'm teaching.
Want some inspiration? Here's a link to my Spotify playlist collection. Check them out and drop me a message for what your tricks are for making/creating playlists!