"Editorial abstract illustration evoking the emotional arc of a song titled "Meditation from Thaïs" by Yo-Yo Ma. Noticeable climb from quiet to loud. balanced composition. Mood: contemplative, intimate. Visual style: 2000s digital editorial aesthetic. Painterly, grainy film texture, muted palette with strategic accent colors. The composition should read left-to-right like a timeline — calm on one side, intensifying toward the other. Strictly no faces, no text, no logos, no literal objects, no band imagery. Pure color-field abstraction with emotional weight. 16:9 editorial format."
Meditation from Thaïs
Yo-Yo Ma
Simply Baroque (2001)
Easy, low-key calm, gentler than 87% of our 19,209 measured songs — measures out best for focus.
70
BPM
Meditation from Thaïs by Yo-Yo Ma is 70 BPM — Adagio (slow).
Half-time 35 BPM · Double-time 140 BPM · released 2001
Fan image for "Meditation from Thaïs"
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Song DNA
Notes: Soft and contemplative cello lines.
Recommended for: anxiety relief meltdown recovery
This sits gently on the calm side. The track moves moderately between quiet and loud with no sudden shifts to brace for — a smooth track with an all-instrumental build, no vocal to follow at an unhurried mid-tempo. Predictable and even, it’s easy to settle into and let run. Across the library, it reads gentler than 87% of everything we’ve measured.
Cultural Context
Originally composed by Jules Massenet.
Listening Prompt
Let the music guide your thoughts.
What to Expect
A gentle rise and fall of emotion.
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Hear it the way it was made
The right gear changes everything.
Moods: contemplative, intimate
Quiet Track
"Meditation from Thaïs" sits at 70 BPM. Built for stillness.
This is well below typical speech rhythm. The body reads slow tempo as permission to rest. Smooth texture and instrumental keep the foreground spare. Good candidates for use: falling asleep, processing a hard day, slow mornings, study sessions where the music must not pull at you. Avoid for any task that needs alertness — the piece works against it.
How this song sits on each sensory axis
A dynamic range of 6/10 means this song moves. Expect a real volume climb between quiet sections and the loudest part of the arrangement — enough that you may want to set the initial volume below where you'd normally land.
Sudden changes: none. Transitions are musically signaled — nothing will surprise you if you're only half-listening.
Texture: smooth.
Predictability is high — the song telegraphs what it will do next. A sensory-sensitive listener can usually guess where it's going without close attention.
Vocal style: instrumental.
Where this sits in Yo-Yo Ma's catalog
We have 13 songs from Yo-Yo Ma in the library. Of those, 6 are rated Safe, 4 Moderate, and 3 Intense. This song's dynamic range of 6/10 sits below the artist average of 7.0, making it the #10 most dynamic track of theirs in our library.
Other tracks from Simply Baroque
We have 2 songs from this album. Overall, the album leans safe in sensory profile.
- Carmen Fantasy — intense DR 9
2001 context
Released in 2001. We have 324 songs from that year in our library, averaging a dynamic range of 6.3/10. This track is about average than the year average. Explore more from the 2000s.
Explore by mood and tradition
Guides that may help
Music for Meltdown Recovery: What to Play When the World Is Too Much
Music for Meltdown Recovery: What to Play When the World Is Too Much — A guide for sensory-sensitive…
Jazz for Anxiety Relief: Which Subgenres Help and Which Overwhelm
Jazz for Anxiety Relief: Which Subgenres Help and Which Overwhelm — A guide for sensory-sensitive li…
How fast is "Meditation from Thaïs"?
70 BPM — Slow (downtempo / ballad)
For running
Too slow for most running; good for warm-up walks or cool-down.
For workouts
Warm-up, cool-down, yoga, stretching.
For daily life
Sleep, meditation, reading, focus work.
Browse more songs at 70 BPM.
When "Meditation from Thaïs" works, and when it doesn't
Use-case verdicts computed from the song's tempo, dynamics, and sensory profile.
~
Focus / studying
Maybe — fine for routine work, but the mid-song changes may pull attention during deep focus.
✗
Running / workout
No — 70 BPM is too slow for sustained cardio.
~
Sleep / winding down
Maybe — calm overall, but tempo is a bit high for deep sleep. Better for winding down than falling asleep.
✓
Driving / road trip
Yes — predictable enough for safe driving attention, interesting enough to stay engaged.
✓
Cooking / dinner background
Yes — sits in the background without demanding attention.
~
Emotional release / catharsis
Not really — it's pleasant but doesn't hit hard enough for cathartic listening.
Related reading
Editorial guides that cover this song's use cases, moods, or artist.
Music for Meltdown Recovery: What to Play When the World Is Too Much
Music for Meltdown Recovery: What to Play When the World Is Too Much — A guide for sensory-sensitive listeners on musiciwant.com
Jazz for Anxiety Relief: Which Subgenres Help and Which Overwhelm
Jazz for Anxiety Relief: Which Subgenres Help and Which Overwhelm — A guide for sensory-sensitive listeners on musiciwant.com
A Sensory Guide to Every Radiohead Album — From Safe to Intense
A Sensory Guide to Every Radiohead Album — From Safe to Intense — A guide for sensory-sensitive listeners on musiciwant.com
Why this rating
We rate this song Safe because its dynamic range stays within our low-variance band, there are no unsignaled changes, and the texture and vocal style are both in the low-fatigue range. Our methodology uses an AND rule for Safe — a song has to clear every dimension to earn the rating.
This song in the Music Studio
21/100 intensity
See how “Meditation from Thaïs” sits against your own sensitivities, or use it as a waypoint in a calmer set.
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Rating last reviewed: 2026-04-05. Reviewed by the Music I Want editorial team against the documented methodology.
Think this rating is wrong? Contact the editor — every message is read and ratings get revised.
By the numbers: how this song compares
Computed from this song’s place among the 19,209 songs we’ve measured.
Where it sits in 19,000 songs
This sits near the calm end of everything we've measured — gentler than 87% of the 19,209 songs in the library. Its intensity reading of 21/100 comes from a dynamic range of 6/10, smooth texture, no sudden shifts, and instrumental. Relatively few songs occupy this exact corner of the spectrum.
What makes it unusual
What stands out most about this song is a slow, unhurried pace: more extreme on that axis than 96% of everything we've measured. At the far opposite end of the library sit the songs built on full chaos — sudden changes, huge quiet-to-loud swings, and relentless energy — the kind of track this one is the counterpoint to.
Feels almost identical to
Autumn Sequence — Charles Lloyd · 99%Blue Bolero — Abdullah Ibrahim · 99%The Swan — Yo-Yo Ma · 99%Midnight Blue — Kenny Burrell · 99%
Closest matches by feel across all 19,209 measured songs — not by genre or artist, by how they actually move.
What it’s good for
Sleep8/10
Focus10/10
Workout1/10
Dinner7/10
Party / hype1/10
Scored from this song’s tempo, intensity, dynamics and texture — not crowd votes.
2001 in context
The 324 songs we’ve measured from 2001 average a dynamic range of 6.3/10. At 6/10, this track is right in line with its year.
Mixes smoothly with
Within a few BPM and close in feel — they flow without a jarring transition.
The fingerprint
Intensity21
Dynamics56
Tempo17
Surprise0
Density0
Predictability0
Vocal force0
Trigger load0
The 8-dimension measurement behind every rating on this page.
Frequently asked about "Meditation from Thaïs"
Quick answers pulled from the song's sensory analysis.
What is the BPM of "Meditation from Thaïs" by Yo-Yo Ma?
"Meditation from Thaïs" by Yo-Yo Ma has a tempo of 70 BPM (Adagio (slow)). At half-time that is 35 BPM, and at double-time 140 BPM.
What is the sensory intensity of "Meditation from Thaïs" by Yo-Yo Ma?
"Meditation from Thaïs" by Yo-Yo Ma rates as Low-Intensity. Dynamic range 6/10, no sudden changes, smooth texture. Our Low-Intensity rating means no single dimension triggers the higher-intensity thresholds.
How loud is "Meditation from Thaïs" — what is its dynamic range?
"Meditation from Thaïs" has a dynamic range of 6/10. Noticeable climb from quiet sections to loudest point. Set opening volume slightly lower than your preferred peak.
Does "Meditation from Thaïs" have sudden or surprising changes?
No. "Meditation from Thaïs" has no sudden unsignaled changes. Every transition is musically telegraphed.
What is "Meditation from Thaïs" best for?
In our library "Meditation from Thaïs" is recommended for: anxiety relief, meltdown recovery. These tags are assigned only where the song's sensory profile genuinely supports the use case.
When was "Meditation from Thaïs" released?
"Meditation from Thaïs" is from 2001, on the album "Simply Baroque". It appears in our 2000s catalog.
What is the emotional mood of "Meditation from Thaïs"?
We tag "Meditation from Thaïs" as contemplative, intimate. Moods are tonal descriptors based on how the song reads emotionally — separate from the sensory intensity axes.
What is the vocal style of "Meditation from Thaïs"?
The vocal style is instrumental.
Is "Meditation from Thaïs" good for running?
Not really — at 70 BPM it's below most running cadences. Better for warm-up, cool-down, or walking. Recreational runners typically step at 140-175 BPM.
Is "Meditation from Thaïs" good for studying?
Only partially. The song's dynamic range (6/10) means there will be loud moments that break focus during deep work.
Can I use "Meditation from Thaïs" for sleep?
Not recommended for sleep. Dynamic range is too high — quiet moments will be ambushed by louder ones.
Should I listen to "Meditation from Thaïs"?
If you want gentle, low-arousal music, "Meditation from Thaïs" is a solid pick — Low-Intensity across every sensory dimension.
Songs with the same DNA
smooth texture, similar intensity — across any genre or era.
What this song means to people
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Keep exploring
Dvořák: Cello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104: II. Adagio
Yo-Yo Ma moderate Haydn: Cello Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Hob. VIIb/1: I. Allegro moderato
Yo-Yo Ma moderate Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007: I. Prelude
Yo-Yo Ma safe Blues to Bechet
John Coltrane moderate Tides
Ed Sheeran moderate Check On It
Beyoncé moderate
Yo-Yo Ma moderate Haydn: Cello Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Hob. VIIb/1: I. Allegro moderato
Yo-Yo Ma moderate Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007: I. Prelude
Yo-Yo Ma safe Blues to Bechet
John Coltrane moderate Tides
Ed Sheeran moderate Check On It
Beyoncé moderate
Where to next?
You know how this one feels — now go find the next one.