The History of Muzak (Episode 57)

What is the cost of silence? What part of the human condition is
lost or found in the stillness of sound? At some point, our culture
seems to have turned its back on reflective quiet, opting instead
for an environment that is constantly using stimuli to condition
the population to various ends. Even in an era of personal choice,
piped-in music is ubiquitous these days as advertisements are
embedded in our daily routines. No doubt the struggle of the avid
music listener is to cut out the commercial carpet bombing of
inoffensive instrumental pop standards so that we can enjoy, well,
anything else really. Today’s episode is a look inside the history
of the sinisterly omnipresent background easy listening….today, the
history of Muzak.   Much of the research for this episode was
found in this book: Elevator Music: A Surreal History of Muzak,
Easy-Listening, and Other Moodsong; Revised and Expanded
Edition  by Joseph Lanza    Subscribe to Highway
Hi-Fi:
iTunes | Stitcher | TuneIn | PocketCasts | Overcast | Google
Play  Twitter | Facebook | Spotify Learn
more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices