Background music

By Tony Samson

WHATEVER happened to background music in public places? Does one even notice it in the malls or restaurants? (Is piped-in music still there?) When waiting for the order to be served, can you notice French songs being played in this Chinese restaurant? Of course, when the sound is too loud, elderly customers ask for it to be turned down — I can’t hear myself think.

Dentists’ waiting rooms and elevators used to feature piped-in music of soothing instrumental renditions of popular tunes. The familiar melodies were intended to lull passengers through an elevator ride or distract patients from the muffled drilling sound of root canal work inside the dentist’s clinic while waiting for their turn. (Is that melody from “Camelot”?)

Movies feature background music to set the mood of a scene. Horror movies employ the crashing organ sound, or the squeaky violin when the sleeping child-sized doll suddenly opens its eyes. Of course, movie musicals present the songs front and center.

Does life also provide background music for the highs and lows of getting through the day?

Neither happy moments nor personal crises merit any musical accompaniment. Can you hear jaunty rock music in the background when you find out a newly subscribed IPO just took a dive on its second day of trading? What about a drumroll when an acquaintance from the past pops up at a mall — Are you still working?

Is a karaoke revelry considered part of life’s musical interludes? Maybe less popular now than they used to be, karaoke parties still pop up as bonding moments. One can rub elbows (or other bodily parts) with a seatmate while belting a song. A loud rendition of that favorite karaoke piece “My Way” can accompany a milestone in life. (But then again, too few to mention.)

Music keeps us company through the day. It’s not just those using phones and wireless ear plugs as permanent bodily attachments that enjoy melodies through streaming. (Are you texting me?)

Certain establishments have common sounds. The spas may have conspired together on the background cubicle sound in their premises that should be as liberally spread as oil on one’s back.

Is there a streaming app employed by massage parlors? (We also do foot massage.) The featured sounds have a slow beat, featuring a single instrument, maybe a nose flute or a two-stringed harpsichord. Mixed in with the tuneless melodies are forest sounds of raindrops hitting large leaves, cicadas crying for understanding, a breeze passing through bamboo poles, and the mating sounds of humpbacked whales in heat. It’s supposed to be enjoyed with both eyes closed. (Go a little lower please.)

Tuneless audio or “white noise” is unobtrusive. Intimate dining places can employ such background sounds to allow conversation to flow freely. The quiet clatter of plates and eating utensils have also been adopted by dining places that feature “degustation” meals — don’t ask for the menu. Small servings of whatever is on hand are serially offered, usually with wine. (These are fisheyes marinated in olive oil.)

Also known as ambient music, this hybrid of jazz, electronic, acoustic, new age, and percussion is not intended to be hummed. It is interchangeable and invites many levels of listening. This may be used by big spaces like theater lobbies featuring a fireside chat to take place in 15 minutes.

Offices that once featured piped-in music to increase productivity in assembling computer chips seem to now avoid any kind of melodic interruption. If the executives want to accompany their keystrokes in the computer, they must stream their own tunes that do not intrude on other cubicles. That’s what the headphones are for. It is not unusual to see heads keeping time to some unheard beat.

Sleep doctors (as differentiated from sleepy ones) may suggest that those suffering from sleep apnea or insomnia avail themselves of white noise machines to lull them to a “Rapid Eye Movement” (REM) type of deep slumber. Such murmuring sounds may include the quiet snoring of a spouse beside the insomniac. Dreams will occur even though one forgets them upon waking.

Perhaps the background music of life should be natural sounds like wind across the trees, as well as human conversation. At night, it’s the hum of the air-conditioning, the buzz of a mosquito, and the alarm clock ringing. Or just a short gasp…followed by silence