Roleplaying Games Session Soundtracks
If I want to create a relaxed environment, I will play relaxing music.
Solfeggio tones.
If I want to create an edgy environment I will play sinister music.
The Alien soundtrack by Jerry Goldsmith is a favourite go-to.
If I want to create a atmospheric Medieval environment, I will play a sort of traditional folk music which has beauty but not crazy-fiddle-shit.
For this, Arabic music tends to work best because it’s instrumental and tonal based. Early Enya ie: Watermark is good because she uses her voice as an instrument, not as lyrics being sung. Lyrics distract attention away from the focus of the imagination based storytelling session by interrupting it with other peoples stories and themes.
Awesome-but-heavy folk bands like Heilung are too impactive and attention-dominating to be much good for roleplay session background soundtracks, even though they are medieval themed.
If I want it annoying and fake I will play music written by d&d fans for the purpose of being used as background music in d&d sessions. That stuff is terrible.
The very best ever and most often listened to around here are select tracks from Ralph Bakshi's Lord of the Rings animation 1978 soundtrack by Howard Shore and Paul Kong, Dark Crystal 1982 soundtrack by Trevor Jones, Conan the Barbarian 1982 (the original Arnold Schwarzenegger version) soundtrack by Basil Poledouris inspired in my opinion by Fantasy on the Huron Carol by Robert Buckley, and anything by Clannad most especially Robin of Sherwood, Fuaim and Magical Ring.
The Skyrim soundtrack, a lot of videogame soundtracks are classical music made for fantasy worlds. Not so much main themes which have to be memorable and punchy. It’s the ambient pieces. Avoid heavy, dramatic stuff intended for rousing the blood into battle. You don’t want a headache you need to be able to think imaginatively, not to feel like you’re being attacked. Even in battle scenes. If you want it lively use techno, not war themes from war games.
Otherwise a general dirge of emotionally empowering retrowave, trance-techno, electronica.