Choosing the best free running music involves understanding the nature of this unique form of acrobatics, and picking specific tunes that complement your free running activities. As an innovative form of physical expression developed from general acrobatics and more unique activities like parkour, free running can be a complex routine that benefits from complementary sound. Although free running doesn’t require a lot of physical gear, those who select the best free running music for practice or performance can enhance their routines quite a bit.
One of the biggest challenges with free running music is to choose songs and pieces of music that have the right tempo for specific activities. Those who are experienced with free running, and other kinds of acrobatics, will understand how quickly they generally move and what kinds of rhythm or tempo best complement these activities. Music that is too slow or has a dirge-like quality will often not be effective, and may interfere with the routine significantly.
Free runners can also evaluate the volume of the music that they select for their routines. Some of this also has to do with the specific sound setup that will be used for a free running practice or performance. Free runners can think about how they will project the sound, either to themselves or to an audience, and this may have an impact on how they choose the best free running music.
In general, those who are experienced in free running as a form of physical expression know that it’s important to use music that inspires the routine. This means choosing free running music for its lyrics and general mood. Many people who practice this form of acrobatics like to choose upbeat songs and compositions that have either specific lyrics related to personal inspiration, or are mainly instrumental—different genres of music will appeal to different free runners; some will prefer heavy rock or upbeat jazz, while others may prefer styles of hip-hop, heavier music like metal, or more exotic pieces including world music and soundscapes.
One more aspect to think about when choosing free running music is the way that this music is formatted or provided. Some free runners may choose music through software, radio, or other formats, where others may utilize either mp3 files or older formats like compact discs. Some “retro” free runners may use cassette tapes or other analog formats.