Katherine Jung ‘26 is a journalist, Calliope editor, and writing center tutor at Pingry. She is also a dedicated violinist, studying at Juilliard Pre-College and playing in Pingry’s string orchestra. In her column, For the Record, she hopes to connect the community through music and personal stories. Her September article aims to provide space and comfort in the midst of our busy lives.
Live, Laugh, Laufey
My junior year summer was spent at a sleepaway in upstate New York, far from the picturesque tropical beaches and bustling cities that decorated my summer vision boards. Our cabin would beg the counselors to take us to Stewart’s and Tops, a grocery store I hadn’t even heard of before camp. We sat on worn couches and ate ice cream straight from the carton, trying every flavor from chocolate to mango dragon fruit sherbet. With the few hours of spare time I had between my classes and mandatory five-hour-long morning practice sessions, I should have been studying for my physics exam and doing my summer reading (which I put off until the first week of September). And yet, I spent my free time learning how to play pool, walking along County Route 10, and watching episodes of Criminal Minds while feasting on almonds and microwaveable rice. The most time-consuming activity I committed to, though? Listening to Laufey’s entire discography.
Laufey is a fan favorite in the classical music world, and she’s certainly mine. Half of my camp’s population has her name somewhere on their end-of-year Spotify Wrapped, myself included. Of course, it’s understandable; it’s always comforting to listen to her signature soft voice and smooth instrumentals—even in her heartbreak songs. I listen to Laufey while walking, cramming for tests starting at midnight (a habit I’ve tried to fix for five years), reading short stories in The New Yorker, doing anything. Even while writing my first draft of this article, I’m listening to Falling Behind.
She opens with an upbeat rhythm on acoustic guitar and piano, both of which she plays herself. Throughout the song, the accents and syllables are placed on the offbeats, making the listener feel a sense of forward motion and going against the rhythmic patterns we would expect. It’s in 4/4 or common time—which I figured out through my three years of Juilliard ear-training experience. Despite the song’s melancholy message, Laufey chose to write Falling Behind in a familiar time signature associated with completeness and symmetry. Laufey hoped that it would be “a hopeless romantic’s summer anthem,” and she certainly succeeded in her goal. The lyrics are unfortunately all too relatable for me; everybody around me is falling in love, and I’m falling behind.
In the past, I’ve never replayed an entire album more than three times. However, for some inexplicable reason, I felt myself sinking into warm bossa nova and jazz beats, hitting the repeat button for one Laufey song after another.
Perhaps it’s because we all seek comfort and familiarity in an age when productivity and perfection seem to be our greatest priorities. We want to replicate the feeling of snuggling beneath layers of blankets in winter and making a warm cup of coffee. While it would be an exaggeration to say that Laufey’s music serves as an instant stress-relieving pill, there are genuine reasons why she stands out from other singers. Laufey delicately layers instruments as if she’s composing an impressionistic piece (like Debussy’s Clair de Lune), employing vibraphone, piano, and even trumpet in a single song. Although her music hasn’t taken a drastic turn since her debut EP in 2021, she leans more into jazz and classical influences from her childhood. From designing her songs using classical-era chordal structure to performing Like The Movies with an entire symphony in the background, Laufey gives her music an old-fashioned and nostalgic quality. Despite being a new artist, her albums invoke images of Golden Age films like An American in Paris—with music by George Gershwin, an iconic film composer who I’ve listened to far too much.
As the new school year starts, it’s inevitable that I’ll sometimes sleep past my alarms and rush to get ready, tearing apart my entire room trying to find a pair of socks. I’ll be caught in awkward situations which I’ll overthink for months and stare at Schoology calendar in horror as assignments pile up. As Laufey sings in Everything I Know About Love (after opening with Bach’s Suite No. 3 on cello), we all trip and fall—whether it’s in love or down the stairs or both. Although life can be overwhelming, I know there are always small moments of warmth and peace. Rather than viewing each day as a new ordeal, we can see these years as fond memories we’ll look back on someday. And last but not least, here are my thirty-two favorite Laufey songs on Spotify that are certain to brighten anyone’s day.
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To contact the author: Katherine Jung '26