What is Muzak? (Elevator Music)

Summary

Muzak, often known as elevator music, is an instrumental genre that plays in the background of commercial spaces to alter moods and influence behavior. Founded in 1922, the Muzak company emerged from the idea of using music to increase productivity and sell more products. From factories to retail settings, Muzak subtly affected work efficiency and consumer habits by encouraging longer store visits. Initially seen as bland, Muzak served as a tool for manipulation rather than enjoyment, embodying the establishment's influence. Despite declaring bankruptcy in 2009, its philosophy endures, influencing modern ambient music and retail experiences.

Highlights

• Muzak's history traces back to military origins, transforming into a tool to boost workplace productivity by the 1940s. 🏢
• Designed to alter mood, Muzak became a staple in retail, subtly encouraging consumers to spend more time shopping. 🛒
• Infamous for being bland, it was even played in presidential settings and outer space with NASA's Apollo missions. 🤯
• Throughout the '60s, Muzak became synonymous with uninspired background noise, opposed by the cultural shifts of the time. 🚀
• While the company went bankrupt in 2009, its influence can be seen in today's ambient music and store playlists. 🎶

Key Takeaways

• Muzak was designed to manipulate behavior through subtle background music. 🎶
• Originating from military technology, it evolved into commercial uses, notably in productivity and retail. 🏭
• Muzak became unpopular over time, perceived as bland and manipulative. 😒
• Despite its decline, its concepts influenced ambient music and are still used in retail today. 🛍️
• Modern applications of Muzak's philosophy include 'quantum modulation' to tailor music for environments. 🎧

Overview

Muzak's journey began in the 1920s when George Square founded the company to transmit music through phone lines. However, its true application emerged during the 1940s, promoting workplace productivity with its inoffensive background tunes. Muzak advocated that their music could significantly improve workforce efficiency, a concept that gained traction during World War II.

By the 1950s, Muzak took over retail environments, underpinning consumer habits subtly with mood-enhancing tunes. Despite its commercial success, public perception soon shifted. Muzak was criticized for its lack of creativity and became emblematic of the mainstream culture that the revolutionary '60s began to push back against.

As Muzak faded, its legacy echoed in modern auditory experiences. The foundational concept of music as environmental modulation endures, shaping retail environments with tailored playlists to influence shopper behavior. Even though Muzak itself no longer sells its familiar tunes, its impact on present-day ambient music genres is undeniable.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 00:30: Introduction This chapter serves as an introduction to the story about the persuasive power of music and its impact on the collective unconscious. It briefly mentions themes such as war, mind control, and commercialism, exemplified by references to half-price sales at Kmart. The narrative aims to shed light on how music, an 'ordinary thing,' plays an influential role in everyday life and history.
• 00:30 - 01:00: The Origins of Muzak Chapter Title: The Origins of Muzak The chapter explores the development of Muzak, a genre characterized by its repetitive and simplistic instrumental background music. Known more commonly as elevator or piped music, it is designed to play in commercial spaces to influence mood and behavior. The genre's name comes from Muzak, a company founded in 1922 by George Square. The chapter delves into Muzak's attempt to popularize and commercialize such music, particularly through its association with gentle jazz sounds.
• 01:00 - 01:30: Muzak's Early Innovations The chapter titled 'Muzak's Early Innovations' describes the work of an individual who originally used trees as antennas to transmit secret radio messages during World War I. After the war, he transitioned to using telephone lines for transmitting music. Muzak's first product involved a music service that was charged to customers via their utility bills. However, this service was quickly outpaced by advancements in radio technology, raising the question of who would continue to pay for such a service.
• 01:30 - 02:00: Stimulus Progression Program The chapter titled 'Stimulus Progression Program' discusses the evolution of background music, commonly known as 'muzak', and its purpose in influencing human behavior. Initially, people were averse to paying a monthly fee to listen to music on their phones, highlighting early resistance to paid music subscriptions. However, it wasn't until the 1940s that background music found its niche. The chapter describes how this type of music, characterized by being energetic yet bland and motivational yet mundane, became popular. It was created by Muzak's in-house orchestra and was used to influence people's actions subtly. Muzak found a successful application in Muzak's stimulus progression program in 1936, cementing its role as a background soundtrack for mundane activities.
• 02:00 - 02:30: Muzak's Wartime Success Explores Muzak's strategic use of music during wartime, promoting the notion that background music boosts workplace productivity. The company created motivational music packages for factories and offices, using 15-minute segments of dynamic music followed by silence. This approach, known as the stimulus program, aimed to maintain worker concentration and increase output, gaining widespread acceptance.
• 02:30 - 03:00: Post-War Muzak and Retail During World War II, American military services maintained significant control over their spending, ensuring manufacturers that they could easily sell their products. In this booming manufacturing period, the primary challenge was workforce efficiency and proper cash management. Music became a tool to boost productivity, and factories were filled with music playlists. However, the chapter humorously notes that Hitler's demise marked the end of this era of unchecked manufacturing exuberance.
• 03:00 - 03:30: Muzak in Elevators and Beyond In the post-war economy, factory owners were concerned about the demand for their mass-produced goods. Muzak, music designed for background use, became prevalent in the 1950s as it was believed to influence consumer behavior. Pseudo-scientists of Muzak argued that music, like 'Holiday for Strings,' could significantly impact shoppers.
• 03:30 - 04:00: Muzak's Cultural Backlash The chapter 'Muzak's Cultural Backlash' discusses the strategic use of Muzak or retail music, which is intentionally designed to act as a background element, not drawing attention to itself. Its purpose is subliminal, aimed at increasing the 'dwell time' of shoppers in stores. This slow, inoffensive music encourages consumers to linger, potentially leading to more impulse purchases. The author conveys a critical view of this manipulation, likening it to treating consumers as 'Consumerist cattle.'
• 04:00 - 04:30: Muzak's Bankruptcy and Legacy The chapter discusses the use of subliminal music and messages in department stores to prevent theft. These included 'little black boxes' that played music mixed with anti-theft messages. Legal at the time and still is, the technique was questionable in ethics. Ultimately, the narrative suggests that modern audiences are now too savvy to be influenced by such subliminal tactics.
• 04:30 - 05:00: The Influence of Muzak on Ambient Music This chapter discusses the historical and cultural impact of Muzak, a brand of background music originally played in elevators. Elevators, when first introduced, were seen as an unsettling technology, potentially dangerous and discomforting to users. Muzak was used to soothe nervous elevator passengers by alleviating boredom and reducing social awkwardness. At the height of its popularity, Muzak had over 100 million daily listeners, being played in a variety of public spaces including restaurants and ocean liners.
• 05:00 - 05:30: Muzak in Video Games The chapter explores the unique and sometimes underappreciated role of muzak (background music) in video games, touching on its psychological and experiential impacts on players.
• 05:30 - 06:00: The Commercial Philosophy of Muzak The chapter discusses the widespread influence and adoption of Muzak, a genre of background music designed to influence behavior and mood. It has been notably used by NASA during the Apollo missions to help calm astronauts during takeoff. Despite its commercial success and ubiquity, Muzak eventually faced criticism and a cultural backlash as the public began to reject the genre.
• 06:00 - 06:30: Tactical Use of Muzak in Modern Retail The chapter 'Tactical Use of Muzak in Modern Retail' explores the perception shift of music in the late 1960s. During this era, music, specifically Muzak, became symbolic of conformism and corporate manipulation, contrasting with its previous revolutionary role in social change. Muzak is described as music not intended for listener enjoyment but rather as a tool for the benefit of those controlling its play, akin to someone imposing their music at a social gathering.
• 06:30 - 07:00: Muzak as Social Control The chapter discusses the influence and decline of Muzak, a company known for creating background music, which eventually declared bankruptcy in 2009. Despite the company's downfall, its style of music persisted and evolved, notably influencing the emergence of ambient electronic genres in the 1970s. Ambient music pioneer Brian Eno is mentioned as having used Muzak as an 'anti-inspiration' for his work.
• 07:00 - 07:30: Conclusion The chapter discusses the blurring distinction between music and noise, spearheaded by pioneering musical works like 'Music for Airports' by Brian Eno and its influence on ambient music. It notes the impact of artists like Aphex Twin and bands like Tangerine Dream on this genre. It humorously admits that one of the names listed is fictitious, showcasing the diversity and extent of this musical movement. Music's delayed decline in popularity in Japan is attributed to its pervasive presence in video games, highlighting examples such as its inclusion in the in-game iPod of 'Metal Gear Solid 4' and its use as elevator music in 'Goldeneye' for N64.

What is Muzak? (Elevator Music) Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 [Music] this is a story about the persuasive power of music and the effect it has on the collective unconscious it's a story of war of mind control and of half-price sales of the Kmart welcome to ordinary things where ordinary things are explained today's ordinary thing music the soundtrack to mid-century elevators and prefrontal lobotomies but what is music the genre known as music is a style of
• 00:30 - 01:00 instrumental background music characterized by repetition and simple arrangements inspired by classical or popular songs also known as elevator music or piped music is designed to be played in commercial spaces with the expressed purpose of altering people's mood and behavior so where did music come from much like xeroxing jet skis and onesies we know music by the name of the company that created it the music company was founded in 1922 by a man named George Square before inflicting soft jazz on the
• 01:00 - 01:30 unsuspecting public square had an illustrious career with the world's biggest military and the Middle East's worst wedding crashes the US Army in World War one he devised a way to transmit secret radio messages using living trees as antennae after the war he swapped trees for telephones as the music company's first product was a device that sent music through telephone lines charging customers monthly on their utility bill but the service was soon eclipsed by developments in radio technology and because who'd want to pay
• 01:30 - 02:00 a monthly fee just to listen to music on their phone so it wasn't until the 1940s that the music company found its true irritating purpose what you're hearing now is paradise program recorded by music's in-house orchestra it's energetic but bland motivational yet mundane is the kind of music that might inspire you to do your taxes or take the pins out and it was also a fixture in news acts highly successful stimulus progression program by 1936 music was
• 02:00 - 02:30 selling the idea that background music could substantially increase productivity in the workplace they began producing packages of motivational music designed to be pumped into factories and offices these recordings were organized into alternating 15-minute blocks of music and silence 15 minutes of progressively energetic music designed to encourage work and concentration followed by 15 minutes of silence to prevent what they called the news accord petit and to stop workers from stopping industrial tools in their ears this was stimulus program and it became an extremely popular idea
• 02:30 - 03:00 during the manufacturing boom of World War two American military services enjoyed virtually unchecked control over their spending so manufacturers were certain they could sell their products and lots of them their only challenge was keeping their workforce efficient and making sure they had enough pockets to stuff all their cash into musics promise of a magic productivity playlists took off and soon every factory floor in America was alive with the sound of music but then a man named Hitler ruined the fun for everyone by blowing his brains across a bunker wall
• 03:00 - 03:30 factory owning fat cats were left wondering who was gonna buy all their mass-produced crap when they weren't living in a war economy anymore but luckily the news that company had an answer the map to music in the 1950s was a lot like joe rogan now no one really liked it or listened to it before but suddenly it was [ __ ] everywhere this was because music best-paid pseudo-scientists made an excellent and persuasive case the music could have a powerful effect on shoppers this is holiday for Strings originally composed
• 03:30 - 04:00 by David Ross and re-recorded by C Berg one of music's main competitors it's slow slightly unnerving to modern ears but essentially the aural equivalent of wallpaper it's music that doesn't draw attention to itself and this was the point retail music was designed to work on a subliminal level study showed that slow-paced inoffensive music encourage shoppers to linger longer in store music called this dwell time time for shoppers to make more impulse purchases and behave like The Consumerist cattle we all know we are they're a good little
• 04:00 - 04:30 drone aren't you now do a dance do it good boy some department stores took these subliminal music philosophy a step further by installing little black boxes that mix music with barely audible anti-theft messages that would repeat 9,000 times an hour now was all this strictly legal the answer is absolutely it was still is but luckily modern audiences are much too sophisticated to fall for anything like that
• 04:30 - 05:00 most famously music was also pumped into elevators where were all used to elevators now but when they were first introduced people saw them for what they were flying danse aisles of disequilibrium with the ability to malfunction and turn you into human soup background music sued elevator riders alleviated boredom and made accidental eye contact with other passengers less awkward at its peak Muzak boasted over 100 million daily listeners slash victims it was pumped into restaurants into ocean liners and into my recurring
• 05:00 - 05:30 nightmare warren chased on the neverending corridor why Alex Jones his pulsating face but he also made it to the White House in 1953 President Eisenhower made his contribution to the musical industrial complex by wiring the White House for music and President Kennedy was piping no slow jams on Air Force One well when he wasn't piping Hollywood starlets and White House staffers and lyndon b johnson loved music almost as much as he loved [ __ ] with the door open as he actually owned a music franchise in austin before he was
• 05:30 - 06:00 president new Zack even made it into outer space as NASA played it on the Apollo missions as a way to calm astronauts during takeoff so while we may imagine the moon mission sounding like this they probably sounded more like this but music was a victim of its own success and the public started to turn against a genre in that culturally quiet
• 06:00 - 06:30 and rarely discussed decade of the 1960s by the late 1960s music became a punchline for anything generic and uninspired especially because Pompeo music had become a vehicle for radical social change revolution and not washing your hair the new Zack was literally the sound of the establishment it was not designed for the enjoyment of listeners but for their manipulation it was music made for the benefit of the person who was playing it it's like the guy who brings his acoustic guitar to the house party it doesn't matter how well he
• 06:30 - 07:00 plays everyone still gonna think he's a knob the company remained on life support for decades until finally declaring bankruptcy in 2009 where it was subsumed by mood Media two years later but where the company faltered its sound emigrated and evolved it could be argued that the emergence of the ambient electronic genres in the 1970s was a direct consequence of musics influence the godfather of ambient and human drumstick Brian Eno actually cites music as a sort of anti inspiration for his
• 07:00 - 07:30 seminal insomnia curing opus music for airports and a stable of ambient musicians have continued to blur the boundary between music and noise ever since effects twin tangerine dream gorilla kidney filler Brasilia the list goes on and only made one of those up music itself took a long time to fall out of fashion in Japan and this partly explains its ubiquitous presence in video games it appears on the in-game iPod of Metal Gear Solid 4 and as literal elevator music in the n64 classic Goldeneye and then of course as
• 07:30 - 08:00 the iconic by mode from The Sims and really this is the perfect post music application of the music sound it's the soundtrack for the accumulation of virtual consumer products specifically designed for your dopamine addled drone brain as it goes about conducting a series of micro transactions as a substitute for any real tangible achievements and my god isn't it and then of course there's the we shot music which if you spent more than six seconds on the Internet needs no introduction but beyond its sound
• 08:00 - 08:30 music's lasting skip mark on the pant of society was its philosophy in the 1990s the ailing company did what it did best sell jargon to gullable executives with deep pockets they coined the term quantum modulation which meant absolutely nothing but they told people it was about matching music to the needs of specific commercial environments companies like music concierge and mood media continue this legacy as leaders in
• 08:30 - 09:00 the booming background music business or experiential design if you like the smell of your own farts they design music collections for retail environments that encourage consumer behavior and attract the stores desired demographics so while the gap will play inoffensive pop music to appeal to its broad audience urban outfitters will play something for a younger trendier crowd and Hollister will play slow down Nursery Rhymes to attract their lucrative simpleton market well its lucrative when they can remember that credit card number
• 09:00 - 09:30 classical music is often deployed tactically it's played in upmarket restaurants because people associate it with quality and are therefore more likely to spend more money and in the UK is frequently deployed in public spaces where drunk people are known to congregate as it pacifies and relaxes them fast-food establishments pick their playlists carefully as well using high tempo music to encourage fast customer turnaround that way patrons can fill their faces with carbs and corn syrup and go have their heart attacks on where sufficiently far away from the premises that is if they can waddle away fast
• 09:30 - 10:00 enough and this is music's real legacy music as a form of social control if you're listening to music that you didn't intend to hear then chances are it's been designed for your manipulation and it's inescapable it's everywhere from restaurants to hotel lobbies to YouTube videos this has been ordinary things if you like what I put out so far please consider donating to my new patreon page and hit the belt so the next ordinary thing can be delivered straight to your face
• 10:00 - 10:30 [Music]