Jazz Coding Music
Jazz for coding should be quiet, mostly piano and bass, and long enough that you forget it is there. Most of this playlist comes from WRG, a Korean channel whose name translates roughly as “a playlist we played because we wanted to hear it”. Most of its sets run three to eight hours and are made for working and studying. Between them sit studio recordings by the Bill Evans Trio, Chet Baker and the Vince Guaraldi Trio. The total is more than 110 hours, so a full working week will not get through it.
Why It Works
Programmers often say jazz helps because it has movement without words. Lyrics compete with reading and writing code, and pop songs tend to pull you towards singing along. Slow trio jazz keeps a soft pulse, and the improvising piano gives the ear something to follow without demanding it. When you need full attention for a bug, it fades into the background, and when you surface again it is still there.
Why Mixtuby
An eight-hour set covers a working day in one track. Press Start in the morning and the first one, a WRG set of about eight hours, takes you to the evening. If you prefer shorter pieces, shuffle brings the Bill Evans and Chet Baker recordings forward. The player runs in a browser tab next to your editor, without an app to install.
History
Quiet small-group jazz has a long history as music for thinking. In 1959 Bill Evans played piano on Miles Davis's Kind of Blue, still one of the best-selling jazz records ever made, and his own trio recordings from the early 1960s set the tone for reflective piano jazz. Chet Baker's trumpet and voice defined the relaxed West Coast sound of the 1950s.
Vince Guaraldi's trio became known to millions through the music for A Charlie Brown Christmas in 1965.
Perfect For
How to Listen
Keep the volume below conversation level so it never competes with your thoughts.
Start one of the long sets at the beginning of the day and let it run.
Use shuffle to break up the long sets with shorter studio tracks.
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For the developer who codes to a trio record and takes their coffee seriously.
🛒 Shop Jazz Coding Music
For coding to brushes and upright bass: a quiet keyboard, good coffee, one classic record.
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Keychron K2 Wireless Mechanical Keyboard
Mac and Windows layouts, typing feel that suits long refactors
Miles Davis, Kind of Blue (Vinyl)
The record a lot of these playlists grew out of
Logitech Lift Vertical Ergonomic Mouse
A smaller vertical mouse for medium and small hands
Hario V60 Pour Over Starter Set
Four minutes of brewing between pull requests
Clean Code — Robert C. Martin
The bible of code craftsmanship
Logitech MX Keys Wireless Keyboard
Backlit, quiet, programmer-approved
Logitech MX Master 3S Mouse
The coder's productivity mouse
JBL Clip 4 Portable Bluetooth Speaker
Waterproof, clip it anywhere
Jazz Coding Music — FAQ
What do you get a programmer who listens to jazz while coding?
A pour over coffee set for their breaks, or one of the classic jazz records on vinyl: Kind of Blue, Time Out or Waltz for Debby. A quiet mechanical keyboard also suits long sessions.
Why do programmers listen to jazz while coding?
Instrumental jazz has rhythm and melody but no lyrics to compete with reading code. Slow trio jazz in particular stays in the background until you want to listen to it.
Who plays on this playlist?
Most of it is long sets from the Korean channel WRG. There are also studio recordings by the Bill Evans Trio, Chet Baker and the Vince Guaraldi Trio.
How long is the jazz coding playlist?
More than 110 hours across 35 videos. Several of the sets last eight hours on their own.
Is jazz better than lo-fi for coding?
It depends on the person. Lo-fi repeats a short loop, while jazz keeps changing, so some people find jazz more interesting and others find it more distracting. Try a day of each.
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