This issue marks the debut of The Space Station 5, a bi-weekly feature in which we ask a celebrity to name 5 records they would take with them on a visit to the International Space Station.
All my spaceflights were on the Space Shuttle although I made a visit to the Space Station on my last flight.When I first flew in 1984, we were allowed 6 cassette tapes which we played on a Walkman. On my second flight in 1996, we took up CDs – I recall a dozen. On my last flight in 2000, I had an ipod.The key was having a good headset. I was happy with all three technologies. You really want a headset for maximum enjoyment (not speakers – because of other onboard ambient noise).Playing vinyl records in weightlessness could be a bit of a technical challenge!
Let me say at the outset that your favorite music is great ANYWHERE but I believe the enjoyment of classical music is really intensified in space. It is incredible to be listening to it while looking at Earth as you orbit the planet.
A sidebar: I really love Jazz but Jazz is meant to be listened to on Earth, not in space.
My 5 albums in no particular order:
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[two_third_last]1. Brothers in Arms, Dire Straits, Warner Brothers[/two_third_last]
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[two_third_last]2. The Best of Baroque, EMI Records, 1988[/two_third_last]
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[two_third_last]3. Millennium Opera Gala, Roy Thomson Hall, CBC Records[/two_third_last]
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[two_third_last]4. The Best of Van Morrison, Polygram, 1990[/two_third_last]
[/one_third][two_third_last]5. The planets, Gustav Holst, Berliner Philharmoniker, Philips, 1989[/two_third_last]
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