Just my own personal take: playing predictable music can help me focus, provided I know the music so well that I mostly forget that it's there. It ideally does not consume any of my attention (I sometimes forget it's playing), but it can crowd out other potential distractions and also lift my mood and energy level.
Playing chess with music...
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Anybody here listen to music while they play live chess? I play live while listening to music and I wondered if it affected my games. Is there a psychological reason why it would? Tell me if you do listen to music while playing and you realize it affects your game for better or for worse. Comments are of course appreciated.