Why press play?

Why press play?

To escape, to feel, to remember, to imagine, to travel in time and space.

We all deserve this.

Time is a precious commodity which makes those fleeting moments we scratch out for ourselves worth savoring.

For example: When you finally get that moment for a glass of wine, shouldn’t it be one which instantly takes you out of the previous moment and in to a series of sensory delights? If not, just grab something in a convenience box and have at it. The notion that having a small amount of anything making the quality less important is confusing to me. The opposite would make more sense. Small amounts of deliciousness should be the rule, not the exception.

Nearly every day, I invite someone to have a seat to listen to what I refer to as my “chefs’ table system.” Virtually every time, the response is instant and often overwhelming joy. No advance description applies since all we have is words. People react starting with beaming smiles, giddy grins, to deeply moving moments, even wonder and tears as the music touches them as if for the first time. We are hard wired to feel music. But it takes more than a built-in appliance to convey the heart of what we want to hear.

Pressing play should have an immediate and meaningful effect, or why do it? Most background music is just more noise. Pressing play, then skip, skip, skip, skip, hoping to feel something is usually futile.

Most discussions of music playback hardware in our lives is full of dismissive contradiction. “Music is really important to me, but I don’t want to see anything.” Sound familiar? How about “my ears aren’t that good, so I probably couldn’t tell the difference?” My least favorite is “it’s just for background so it doesn’t matter.” If that is the case then: Windows are “just so we can see through them,” lighting “is so it’s not dark,” and interior finishes are “so you don’t see the nails.” None of it matters? Or does it?

We see spectacular interior spaces which photograph beautifully, but often wonder what it “feels like” to be in that place. Experience has shown that expansive clean smooth lines lead to cold feeling echo chambers which amplify unwanted sounds, mask conversation and make music listening unpleasant. That look can be maintained, and the feel can be vastly improved with an understanding of how sound works and the wide range of materials with can neutralize echo effects.

An inviting place to relax, read, have a glass of wine and possibly escape into a beloved piece of music appears to be a big ask to the broader design community. Apparently, the folks at Architectural Digest have something different in mind for the way we should be living.

Is it possible to design a beautiful place that works for listening to music? Yes. I visit spectacular rooms all of the time. Once in a while I am allowed to put a pair of speakers in them. In some even rarer occasions I’m even allowed to place them where they can actually sound good. Yes, positioning is important. Like a piano, speakers are acoustic devices subject to the laws of physics. A piano will sound best in a particular orientation in a given room.

Hiding stuff is cool. I’ve been in a lot of gorgeous kitchens with amazing cabinets which make it really hard to find the refrigerator. I suppose that with training I’d eventually figure how to find all the parts I’d need to make some Toll House cookies (from scratch, organic, please). But where is that dishwasher? Luckily, I have my phone, so I can always Google for instructions on how to turn the touch panel oven on. Of course, that is if I can figure out how to turn the lights on first.

When it comes to playing music at home, it appears that there is little room for middle ground which is sad. It’s either “everything is invisible” or the “curse of the man cave.” I’ve yet to figure out why. Is it shame? Probably not. I’ve yet to see a Steinway concert grand banished from view. Do we hide the Wolf/AGA/La Cornue etc too ? These are merely large purpose-built things of accepted beauty which enhance people’s lives with their everyday use. Hmm.

Finding someone who understands your need to feel something when you listen to music is not that easy. Someone who understands that it has to fit in your lifestyle aesthetically and one who does not fall in the “invisible music playing appliance” camp is harder still.

We are out there, and yes, you deserve this seemingly simple life pleasure.