The Top 10 Period Drama Soundtracks

If you are anything like me, you need background noise while you work. I’m not a white noise person (I find it more distracting than no noise!). So, I often turn to music while I blog and work. Quite often it is musicals- give me Six or Anastasia any day of the week! However, I also turn a lot to soundtracks. Scores and soundtracks from shows are wonderful ways to shift your mood and make work a bit more exciting. These are my top 10 period drama soundtracks, and should be your next listens! (All of these are available on Spotify for me in Canada- they should be elsewhere, as well!) 

These period drama soundtracks are the perfect background to your working day, and have the benefit of being appropriate no matter who is around. It’s a lovely way to escape for a little bit while you get things done!

Downton Abbey (2011)

Can you have a period drama soundtrack list and not include Downton? I think not. The Downton Abbey score is one of my favourites- I love that with every single piece, I can immediately think of the first season scene(s) that it corresponds to. (They did actually continue to re-use the same soundtrack throughout with small changes and additions, but I always think of the initial scene.) This sweeping soundtrack will definitely take you to Yorkshire and away from your work and stress. 

The Crown, Season 2 (2017)

All of the season soundtracks from The Crown are wonderful, but for some reason, the second season is my favourite. Although I don’t know The Crown as well as Downton, this is another case of me being transported to a particular scene while listening (though not to the point of distraction.) This score certainly gives you a regal feeling, which is sometimes what you need to get through several hours of emails (that probably didn’t need to be sent…)!

Harlots (2017) 

This is probably the most “different” soundtrack/ score that I’ve included here. Harlots focuses on the eighteenth century courtesans and sex workers of London, quite a radical departure from how we normally see these women on screen. And appropriately, the soundtrack is a radical departure, as well. It has an electronica/house vibe to it- you will either love it or hate it. Quite different for a period drama soundtrack, but hopefully it motivates you to get things done and power through. 

Jane Eyre (2011)

I don’t love Jane Eyre in either book or film version; I just do not seem to connect with most Brontë works. However, this soundtrack is beautiful. Yes, it is on the darker side and slightly haunting, but it is Jane Eyre. I very much prefer string-based scores, and violins are prominent here. A wonderful soundtrack to help you wind down at the end of your day. 

Bridgerton (Covers from the Netflix Original Series) (2020)

Obviously I had to include Bridgerton somewhere on this list! I’m including the album of VItamin String Quartet covers, rather than the soundtrack itself. Even though there are only six songs on this album, I quite often will listen to this for my entire working day. Interestingly, I found these pieces slightly distracting in the show- I was continually trying to figure out where I knew the song from. However, I think that these are fantastic covers, and definitely pep up my work day. (I’ve also added these to my general VSQ playlist, for more variety some days.)

Sanditon (2019)

Oh, Sanditon, what an interesting path you’ve taken. The show premiered in the UK in late 2019 to mixed reviews, and ITV had declined to create a second season before it had ever aired in North America. (We got it in January/ February 2020 here.) However, it appears that as of January 2021 there may actually be a second season in place through Amazon! 

Ruth Barrett’s score for Sanditon is a gem. Barrett has given many interviews where she discusses her creative process and inspirations for this soundtrack, as many people don’t expect the folk music element that dominates. It is a lively and exciting score, and it is historically accurate- what more could you want to take you through the day? 

Anne With an E (2019)

It took me a while to come around to Anne With an E as a television show. It’s not that it isn’t a wonderful show, but the 1980s CBC movies with Megan Follows are such classics for me. I have come around though, and I love the new interpretation of our beloved Canadian classic. 

Anne With an E is absolutely a Canadian score, and the backbone of the fiddle almost immediately transports you to Prince Edward Island and Green Gables. A bit different from other soundtracks, you can hear the elements of nature in Anne with an E– you will feel like Anne yourself!

Emma (2020)

Emma unfortunately had a release date just as a pandemic was starting. (Not that anyone would have known that…) It was one of the first movies available to rent digitally, as it never came to the theatres for many of us. However, luckily it has become a beloved film in the Austen universe, and the soundtrack along with it. Like Sanditon, the Emma soundtrack has a serious folk influence. This soundtrack can be slightly distracting for me, as there is quite a bit of vocals included, but if I’ve got a lot of routine things to do that don’t require a lot of thought, it is perfect!

Poldark (2016)

Poldark is one of those tv shows that I would have never thought that I would enjoy, and now I’ve watched it through a couple of times. I love that it is set in the Regency, as it doesn’t fit with the image of the Regency that we so often have in mind! (I always have to remind myself, most of the UK’s population was not in London for the season, but living their normal lives elsewhere…) Poldark has a beautiful string-based soundtrack, an evocative and broad score that quickly pulls you into the past along with it. (Certainly not as dark as Jane Eyre, but perfect for a melancholy day.) 

Pride and Prejudice (2005)

Oh, Pride and Prejudice, one of the most controversial period films out there. You either love this movie or are entirely opposed to it. I personally love it, for two reasons. Firstly, it was the first P&P screen adaptation that I watched, and that sticks with you. (I don’t need a line by line adaptation, myself.) Secondly, this soundtrack is gorgeous. (Out of all of the period drama soundtracks out there, I’ve never heard anyone complain about it.) I am a ballet dancer, and more disposed than most to love the piano. You don’t find a lot of majority piano-based scores, and this Pride and Prejudice score is everything I could ask for and more. No matter what I have on my plate or what mood I’m in- I can always put this on! 

What period drama soundtracks do you have on repeat? 

Cheers,
The Historian
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