Do You Find Others’ Music Following Your Every Move?
“You don’t like music.”
It is not that I do not like music, actually, I love it. I love music, but not when it is blasted in my ears by a stranger. When I’m trying to peacefully make my way through many public places, I find myself getting all distracted. British psychologist, Zoe Nendick, puts my thoughts into clear words: “The music that makes one person feel calm may not make another feel calm.”
Nowadays it seems public spaces — from airports to grocery stores to wine shops — are invaded by music, also known as “piped music.” When used properly, music can foster a positive atmosphere to those who want it; however, in unthoughtful instances, the volume has been adjusted from being in the background to being in the foreground.
Depending on whom I talk to, I get different takes on this obnoxious piped music phenomenon. My father, a typical soft-spoken Brit, brought up restaurants as a place where it can be impossible to hear the conversation of the person across from you. When the music is too loud, people take it upon themselves to shout to the person next to them, making a poor environment for conversation. On the other hand, my mother, a globe-trotting and über social Norwegian, believes I act like an old hag when I mention music, volume, and its excessiveness. Now, I am not saying that music cannot create a bubbly atmosphere (because it does when the environment is right), instead I am saying that it is necessary to reassess the ways in which piped music is decided to be played, at what volume, and what genre.
If we do not acknowledge this, then we do not acknowledge one of the many factors that can interfere with peoples’ quality of life. The U.S Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) acknowledges why people are hesitant to assign the misuse of sound as a type of pollutant; “The fact that you can’t see, taste or smell it may help explain why it has not received as much attention as other types of pollution, such as air pollution or water pollution.”
Music can and does connect people. But, it can easily do the opposite depending on sound-level, genre, and the situation.
Let’s say we are at a club on a Saturday night; there are colorful lights and loads of young people. It does not feel quite right because, well, there is no dance, house, or techno music: there is no music at all. People are about to trickle out until the DJ finally mixes the music. People hesitate, we hesitate, because while the music is good, it is too quiet to feel lively. Our dance movements feel too awkward at this sound level, because there is not enough noise to feel the music. This is an instance where loud, upbeat tunes are necessary to foster the typical club vibe that customers intentionally seek-out.
Now, imagine it is a Sunday evening at Newark Airport. We have a late night international flight. We get through the hour-long security line and are ready to sit-down and relax before boarding. However, the public speakers are not giving flight announcements, rather, they are playing passé pop music. Our ears have never felt so exhausted at 6pm on a Sunday. With travelling comes anxiety. With travelling comes joy. With travelling comes uncertainty. With travelling comes happiness. Yet, the music does not soothe or excite us — instead, it overwhelms and worsens our travel anxieties. The music is completely unnecessary in this circumstance because it is unclear what the purpose is. If there is no purpose and it does more harm than good, why not shut it off? Give people back the freedom to listen to their own private music or the ambience around them in this situation.
Still, piped music is not just annoying because of its random invisible purpose; businesses strategically use it to enhance their bottom line. A 1993 study by Areni and Kim discovered that customers at a wine shop are more likely to drop more money when classical music is played rather than the Top-Forty music. By implementing this strategy, this business is fully aware of how this choice can aid their sales.
A 1966 study by Cain-Smith and Curnow examined the effect different volumes of music had on customer experience and its subsequent effect on the business’s income. In this study, booming music was played in a grocery store which then resulted in customers spending less time and money. In stark contrast, soft, quiet music resulted in customers spending more time and thus more money. Money, money, money. Even when there is thought behind the tunes, businesses nonetheless make decisions based on profit margins.
It is naive to think that every person will react the same way to a certain genre of music in a store, restaurant, and frankly any consumerist situation. Zoe Nendick again brings up a thoughtful conclusion; “If there is too much going on it can cause some people to be overstimulated so removing music is actually a way of making places more acceptable and comfortable for people to be in.”
There is always room to reassess the “why” behind our actions, and in fact, it is necessary.
On the bottom line, let us not corrupt the intended use of music by turning it up for profit, rather let us focus on music as a feel-good connector in the appropriate place.
Works Cited
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency | US EPA, https://www.epa.gov/. Accessed 4 October 2023.
Areni, Charles S., and David Kim. “The Influence of Background Music on Shopping Behavior: Classical Versus Top-Forty Music in a Wine Store | ACR.” Association for Consumer Research, 1993, https://www.acrwebsite.org/volumes/7467/volumes/v20/NA-20/. Accessed 4 October 2023.
Landphair, Ted. “Unwanted Music is Noise Pollution to Some.” VOA, 26 March 2012, https://www.voanews.com/a/unwanted-music-is-noise-pollution-to-some-144398355/180907.html. Accessed 4 October 2023.
Rodrigues, Ashwin. “Noise Pollution Is Really Bad For You.” GQ, 14 June 2023, https://www.gq.com/story/noise-pollution-is-really-bad-for-you. Accessed 6 October 2023.
Spowart, Nan. “A look at music in public places and the effect on us everyday.” The National, 15 January 2023, https://www.thenational.scot/news/23251224.look-music-public-places-effect-us-everyday/. Accessed 4 October 2023.
Vibenomics. “The Science of Grocery Store Music―And How the Right Sounds Can Help Your Bottom Line.” Vibenomics, 28 November 2017, https://www.vibenomics.com/grocery-store-science/. Accessed 4 October 2023.
