Sleep Song

Pulsing rhythms and gauzy sonic breezes introduce this week's Sleep Song. Here, composer Eduardo Rivera experiments with what it means to feel a human connection to instruments that are completely digital. There is no wood, no metal in these instruments, they have never known air, they have never known touch — they are completely self-contained and completely isolated, yet this electronic world sings of tranquility and deep rest. What is our dance with this digital universe, and how will we chart these new landscapes?

Original music from composer Eduardo Rivera.

Meditative Story combines extraordinary human stories with meditation prompts embedded into the storylines — all surrounded by breathtaking music. Think of it as an alternative way into a mindfulness practice, through vivid stories and cinematic music and production values. Find Meditative Story wherever you listen to podcasts.

An expectant thrum sets the tone, as the softest strings begin to slowly strum. With intentions of being the truest form of a lullaby, this Sleep Song is a duet between a Delta Wave binaural beat, known to enhance sleep, and the most diaphanous of voices. The delta wave acts as a constant pulse, much like the trusted tidal movement of the deepest ocean, as quiet and comforting voices sway in its sea, like sunlight streaming through underwater realms. Chamber strings and woods tiptoe throughout, laying down meditative motifs around the reassuring undercurrent.

Original music from composer Hil Jaeger.

Meditative Story combines extraordinary human stories with meditation prompts embedded into the storylines — all surrounded by breathtaking music. Think of it as an alternative way into a mindfulness practice, through vivid stories and cinematic music and production values. Find Meditative Story wherever you listen to podcasts.

For this Sleep Song, our composer Eduardo Rivera was wondering: At what point does something new feel familiar and comfortable? A piano motif floats through a bed of textures and accompanies us throughout the song. Over time the piano melody embeds itself into the backdrop of our consciousness, like the rhythmic pendulum swing of a grandfather clock, a gentle presence, the steady repetition inviting us to investigate other elements in the music. The reliable landscape feels comfortable now, with a deeper sense of familiarity, allowing us to still our mind and surrender.

Original music from composer Eduardo Rivera.

Meditative Story combines extraordinary human stories with meditation prompts embedded into the storylines — all surrounded by breathtaking music. Think of it as an alternative way into a mindfulness practice, through vivid stories and cinematic music and production values. Find Meditative Story wherever you listen to podcasts.

Our composer, Ryan Holladay, writes: On a recent Sunday drive in East Los Angeles, I came upon an estate sale in my neighborhood of Mount Washington. As I rummaged through the items throughout the rooms, it became clear that this home had belonged to a meditation teacher as the house was full of Ram Dass LPs, bells, even a singing bowl. One item stuck out: a Magnus Electric Organ, which looked to be built in the 50's or 60's. It essentially pumps air like an electric accordion and allows you to play the notes like a keyboard. I purchased it for $30, brought it home, and set it up to record, running it through chorus and phaser pedals.

But as I was recording it, the machine began to fade — certain notes became unreliable, even disappearing altogether and melting into the sound of the fan. The organ was failing. And as I played it, it struggled to maintain the integrity of the tones. At the end of the recording, I turned it off for the last time. It wouldn’t turn on again. This is a recording of this humble machine, at the end of its life, offering its peaceful sounds one last time.

Original music from composer Ryan Holladay.

Meditative Story combines extraordinary human stories with meditation prompts embedded into the storylines — all surrounded by breathtaking music. Think of it as an alternative way into a mindfulness practice, through vivid stories and cinematic music and production values. Find Meditative Story wherever you listen to podcasts.

Deep resounding cello opens a pathway to an unknown world, where violin, harp, and piano dance, where echos of gentle voices breathe sung revelations. Trembling strings build to crescendos, as if this new world waits eagerly for our arrival, our acceptance of this invitation. Underneath it all, the constant beat of two sine waves pulsing 98hz in your left ear and 100hz in your right, creating a delta wave. Feel it steady and massage the mind and heart, as glissandos of harp lighten and uplift, ground and regenerate.

Original music from composer Hil Jaeger.

Meditative Story combines extraordinary human stories with meditation prompts embedded into the storylines — all surrounded by breathtaking music. Think of it as an alternative way into a mindfulness practice, through vivid stories and cinematic music and production values. Find Meditative Story wherever you listen to podcasts.

An opening chord like warm rays of the sun greets us as soft flute duets with piano. The grounding thrum of stringed instruments, violins, cellos, violas, and contrabass, invites the heart space to open, while vintage Celeste and synth ebb and flow throughout the piece like ocean waves, whisking away the day. A slow build in pitch lifts off into wave upon wave of soundscape while bubbling arpeggios add levity and joy, as a wandering piano guides us on our journey into sleep.

Original music from composer Eduardo Rivera.

Meditative Story combines extraordinary human stories with meditation prompts embedded into the storylines — all surrounded by breathtaking music. Think of it as an alternative way into a mindfulness practice, through vivid stories and cinematic music and production values. Find Meditative Story wherever you listen to podcasts.

Music adapted from Matthew Mercer’s Meditative Story, "The magic that ripples out when we share our passions with others."

A pan-like flute sets an invitation to a world of possibility and wonders to explore. Delicate strings and open synth keys entice down a path unknown, toward verdant nooks and crannies that lay just around the corner of awareness. A soothing piano melody suggests that the day's tasks can be put aside for playful dreaming. Flutes rise in crescendo, and warm vibrations reveal lush and magical forest trails awaiting footfall. Spritely flutes call to the wise and knowing sense within, that we're safe, and seen, and heard. Repeating waves of looping bass and piano feel at once nostalgic and knowing, grounded in this moment. Trumpets hail all good hearts and are countered by an insistent piano melody reaching out across vast spaces. The returning synth theme nudges the young one within, eager to remind us we already know how to play.

Original music from composer Ryan Holladay.

Meditative Story combines extraordinary human stories with meditation prompts embedded into the storylines — all surrounded by breathtaking music. Think of it as an alternative way into a mindfulness practice, through vivid stories and cinematic music and production values. Find Meditative Story wherever you listen to podcasts.

Music adapted from Silvia Vasquez-Lavado’s Meditative Story, "Choosing compassion over conquest."

Greeted by an ethereal choir, the soft echoing voices invoke a sloughing off of doubts and the revealing of untapped stores, a journey about to begin. The next movement yields an orchestral string section and waves of reverberating tones with a definitive piano theme, solidifying and grounding the listener in quiet confidence. Plucking bass and cello strings mimic carefully placed footsteps, to emphasize the precipices we reach with determination and time. Contemplative piano melodies duet with string-like synths, wrapping the song in the safety to reconsider our approach. An escalating crescendo mirrors ascent, while a penetrating piano theme asks us to stop, soften, and allow our heart's compassion to turn inwards, cradling suffering in kindness, and fostering a fresh way forward.

Original music from composer Ryan Holladay.

Meditative Story combines extraordinary human stories with meditation prompts embedded into the storylines — all surrounded by breathtaking music. Think of it as an alternative way into a mindfulness practice, through vivid stories and cinematic music and production values. Find Meditative Story wherever you listen to podcasts.

A whimsical synth and piano line seems to recontextualize the day’s ups and downs, suggesting a more playful lens with which to frame the view. It’s a sunny, joyful melody, and a kind of nostalgic reminder that the child within is always available. We’re then met with an expansive sound wash, like the unveiling of a vista overlooking a vast shore of what might be. Shimmering synth samples and washed out tones introduce an entirely new celestial theme — leaving the known behind, as a slow flux of gauzy waveforms softly assert inner resolve.

Original music from composer Ryan Holladay.

Meditative Story combines extraordinary human stories with meditation prompts embedded into the storylines — all surrounded by breathtaking music. Think of it as an alternative way into a mindfulness practice, through vivid stories and cinematic music and production values. Find Meditative Story wherever you listen to podcasts.

We're greeted by a deep sine wave, reminiscent of muted brass, like calls from mountaintop to mountaintop heralding the arrival of night. The introduction of a twinkling, percussive pulse grounds the body-mind. It's a quiet repetitive rhythm, the persistence of something hopeful in the midst of supporting open chords. Held by this foundation, synth vibrations, layered strings and cascading chimes undulate, folding in on themselves, opening the heart, kindling what's possible.

Original music from composer Eduardo Rivera.

Meditative Story combines extraordinary human stories with meditation prompts embedded into the storylines — all surrounded by breathtaking music. Think of it as an alternative way into a mindfulness practice, through vivid stories and cinematic music and production values. Find Meditative Story wherever you listen to podcasts.