The Soundtrack of Your Trip

I will be going to vienna as well, probably before you though. I changed my cities of interest after finishing my music history courses and my teacher told me all these place to go, I'm looking forward to it and will try to get a standing room ticket somewhere.

BTW although I live in NE now, I am from Polk Co. and lived in orlando awhile as well, I've only been to celebration twice.

Although I love classical music (season tickets to symphony), I focus on more current cuts as my travel soundtrack. For my trip to Italy, I spent time on iTunes Italy (you can change the country at the bottom of the iTunes page) to see what people were listening to. I put a great mix of songs from home, current Italy favorites, and old school Italian tunes (funiculi, funicula). I also spend some time watching MTV wherever I am - much to my chagrin, the Italians LOVE 1980's American music, so I heard more old-school Guns-n-Roses and Peter Gabriel than anything Italian. For my upcoming Ireland trip, I'm loading up the iPod with U2, Cranberries, Van Morrison, and the rest.

I usually don't bring music with me, but prior to a trip I listen to certain music to get in the mood. For Paris it's any Edith Piaf -- a no-brainer there. I'm going to Paris again soon and am listening to Serge Gainsbourg's Comic Strip CD. When I'm in Paris, I like to tune in to a local rock station and see what American/British artists they are playing.

On my last trip to Europe a month ago I was listening to Beirut- The Flying Club Cup. It was completely written and performed in Paris and each song is about a different French city. It's beautiful and matched the landscape perfectly.

If you are going to Brussels you will enjoy the musical instruments museum. As you walk from display to display, the music you hear in the headset changes to feature the instruments you are looking at. For example, as you stand in front of a quartet of saxophones made by Adolphe sax himself, you hear an excerpt from the Singelee Quatour, the first work written for saxophone quartet. I imagine other works you hear are just as significant. Seeing as you are a music appreciation teacher, you will no doubt be more knowledgeable about the museum's soundtrack than I am.

Personally, I don't take music with me, but various locales certainly start the soundtrack in my head going.

It is fun to listen to and immerse your self in the sights and sounds of the areas you are visiting. One morning on boat on a canal in Burgandy, I thought I had woken up in a Monet painting. I loved sitting in the outdoor cafe in St. Mark's square listening to the 2 competing orchestras take turns. There seemed to be a lot of Vivaldi concerts and operas to attend while in Venice. In Murren Switzerland a few years ago we came upon a group of Swiss Cow bell ringers giving concert on the most enormous cowbells I ever got to see close up. In Salzburg "The Hills are alive with the Sound of Music" and Mozart. Friends of ours just took a "Sound of Music" tour of Austria. When we came home from our last trip to Italy my husband added parts of the "Pines of Rome" to our DVD of our travels in Rome. In Vienna I came upon dancers in the summer elegantly dressed and wanted to join them in Strauss waltzes. PS - My husband made me visit Celebration, FL to take in your "planned" community on a FL trip.

I like music well enough, but , I never bring any with me, I just think of having to have one more " thing" to carry and watch and worry about as not fun. In fact, on my last trip to Paris I didn't even take a camera( I had been before and didn't want or need another shot of the Eiffel Tower, LOL).

I do think it would be nice to be somewhere and hear soaring music though, but the thought of chargers and batteries etc just turns me cold.

I realize for others though it would be very important.

PS I am the type to travel for weeks with only carrry on also.

I also like to listen to the sounds of the area while travelling, and to tallk with both local people and fellow travellers. However I also like to pack music along. There are times on longer train journeys or in my Hotel room where I just want some "quiet time" with nice music.

An IPod doesn't take much room or weight, and I have a wide variety of tunes and playlists to choose from - soft rock, classical, Italian, etc. (depending on mood and circumstances). Charging is not an issue at all, as I have a USB Charger that operates anywhere with just a Plug Adapter. Of course without a Computer I can't add music or re-configure playlists, but that's a minor detail.

I took my iPod to Italy in September with 1,500 songs on it from every genre' and a variety of videos had access to all of my music. If you have (or get) an 80 GB video iPod, you can download both audio and video podcasts from Rick, then watch and listen to them while you're there. There are many available from this site and other places that actually "walk" you through various attractions such as the Louvre, The Doumo in Florence, the Vatican Museum and many more. Also makes the time pass when you're on a train, bus or just out walking as well. Good luck.

I listen to the sound of the people walking down the street speaking in their native languages. I listen to the clamor noisy trains and cars as they shuffle locals around the city. I listen to the sound of the wind coming off the Mediterranean as it blows through the vineyards of the Cinque Terre. I listen to the children squeal as they chase after pigeons in St. Mark's Square in Venice. I listen to the sound of ships coming in and out of ports on the North Sea. I listen to the sound of street musicians as I walk by.

Troy, I don't mean to belittle wanting to have your passion with you when you're traveling. Since music is your passion, then obviously it's going to be a large part of you life no matter what you're doing. However, the sights are just as important as the sounds, smells, feelings and tastes of a location. Don't spend your whole trip with your iPod in your ears.

I could never travel without music. It makes up a very big part of my experience...and it has also been a really good tool in meeting friends. Once in Italy I was in a small bar filled with people of my age who were listening to really bad electronic music...so I offered my mp3 player to the bartender and within 10 minutes the whole place was dancing to a particularly good Tom Vek song. I made some really great friends that night...proof that music does not necessarily shut one off from culture and people.

Music is something everyone can relate to.

During my European traveling experience, I actually listened to very little music. Instead, I listened to "Learn Italian" tracks - and did it ever make a difference in Italy!

This may sound a bit strange, but consider picking up the soundtrack to the cooking series David Rocco's Dolce Vita. It has a great combination of modern upbeat music, mostly in Italian or English.

Pete