Best & worst "on hold" music?

PS Add to my first sentence the reminder you can visit their website. Arrrgh!

Anything not on a loop, especially when interrupted by the 'Your call is important to us' message.

Modern is better than classical because sometimes I might like a song enough to find out more about it.

If you want to get really wound up just phone the appointments line at the Nuffield Hospital in Derby! Tin cans jangling loudly interrupted constantly by the message of assurance that the call is very important to them. AAgh At the end of that, quite often just get timed out.

Like the time we travelled on a chartered flight on holiday and the on board muzak played on take off and landing was the Rolling Stones 'This could be the last time....'!

I was startled to hear 'Always look on the bright side of life' by Monty Python played by a hospital line........... mixed feelings.......

Greggs the bakers have "if I'd known you were coming I'd have baked a cake" it made me smile.

Although don't like being forced to listen to music whilst 'on hold',I think it is preferable to deathly silence,which makes me wonder if I have been cut off. This happened a couple of times before my doctor's surgery introduced 'on hold' music. They were notorious for cutting off callers,who would sit waiting,totally oblivious to the fact,until,after a ridiculous amount of time,it would dawn on them what had happened.

There is a way that music can be identified, I believe it's called "Shazam"?????

Drives me nuts.

I don't really like any on hold music, it's alright for a minute or two but it's the loop thing that's irritating, if they are going to play music why not use a half hour loop then (hopefully) you should only hear it once. I prefer a spoken message, just a you are number so and so in the queue, then no need for anything until you go up in the queue, none of this 'you are important to us' rubbish. My local housing association uses the 'you are number etc' but then gives you the option of leaving your name and number and they will call you back when your position in the queue reaches number 1. Seems to work very well and the call back is always in a reasonable time.

OVO energy gives you a choice you can press buttons and shift genre......they speak to you as if you, and they, are both human too...almost disconcerting it is.

Anything as long as it's "real" and not an electronic version. If I must listen to the first 16 bars of Vivaldi's "Spring" on a loop please at least give me a violin accompanied by an orchestra and not a consort of stylaphones at the bottom of an old fashioned metal dustbin!

France Telecom English speaking line is bearable. If I hear Greensleeves I scream and put the telephone down.

My son was at a cathedral school and their on hold music was 'thine be the glory, risen conquering son' from Judas Macabeus.

wasn't it wonderful, back in the day, when you either got an engaged tone or a human being answered the phone.....

Like many others, I hate 'on hold' music. However I do prefer something beaty and jolly rather than the sad, classical music many seem to choose. Might as well tap my feet and feel upbeat rather than dreary and depressed before I start .

Like any "calming" music, between the "you are now number 75 in the queue" message.

When you ring our doctors surgery they play the most doleful cello music whilst you're waiting. If you're feeling bad anyway( which you tend to be when ringing for an appointment!) it makes you feel 10 times worse.

When I made a call yesterday I was given a choice as to what style music I would like to listen to while I waited for them to pick up on my ' very important to us ' call. I chose classical. A new experience to me. Wish I could remember who I was calling..but that's another thread

Santander. Sounds like a film score for a western. Just as it builds up to a climax and you know the cavalry are finally arriving... it goes back to the beginning of the recording.

Our local water company use Handel's Water Music which they no doubt think witty or appropriate but I feel is adding insult to injury.

I really like the EDF one, actually wish I could get it on a loop, I think it might help me to drift off to sleep!

My insurance company plays 'Breaking Glass'!

There isn't a 'best'! The most irritating so far was a GP surgery playing Things Can Only Get Better. Well, they may have done if there was ever an appointment with my GP of choice.

The very worst? Beethoven's Seventh Symphony played with a disco beat background. I seem to remember that it was the Pensions Agency that used that one and as, at the time, I was a volunteer benefits advisor with Age Concern I had to listen to it frequently.