Background music is no longer an afterthought at many airports, which are hiring local musicians and carefully curating playlists to help lighten travelers' moods. London's Heathrow Airport built a stage to showcase emerging British performers for the first time this summer, reports the AP. Nashville International Airport has five stages that host more than 800 performances per year. In the Dominican Republic, Punta Cana International Airport greets passengers with live merengue music.
Tiffany Idiart and her two nieces were delighted to hear musicians during a recent layover at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. "I like it. There's a lot of people here and they can all hear it," says Grace Idiart, 9. "They could have had a hard day. And so the music could have made them feel better." Airports are also curating their playlists. Detroit Metro Airport plays Motown hits in a tunnel connecting its terminals. Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas has a playlist of local artists compiled by an area radio station. Singapore's Changi Airport commissioned a special piano accompaniment for its giant digital waterfall.
Music isn't a new phenomenon in airport terminals. Brian Eno's Music for Airports, an album released in 1978, helped define the ambient music genre. But Barry McPhillips, the head of international creative for Mood Media, which provides music for airports and other public spaces, says technology is enabling background music to be less generic and more tailored to specific places or times of day. Mood Media—formerly known as Muzak—develops playlists to appeal to whoever's in the airport at any given time. It might program calmer music in the security line but something more energizing in the duty-free store. "We design for all of these moments," McPhillips says.
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At the same time, many airports are going low tech, hiring local musicians to give travelers a sense of the place they're passing through. The programs benefit musicians, who get paid and gain wider exposure. Chicago's O'Hare and Midway airports have more than 100 live performances each year. Phoenix's Sky Harbor International Airport now has two stages featuring local artists. "People's anxiety levels are very high when they're traveling," says Tami Kuiken, the manager of airport music at the Seattle-Tacoma airport. Once they're "greeted with music, all of a sudden their anxiety and stress levels [drop]."
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