Elevator music is a soft, calming style of music pumped into elevators. It is also called lift music, pipe music and muzak. It is used in more than just elevators — it also plays in hotels, offices and public spaces. It owes its inception and the title muzak to an American major and inventor called George Owen Squier.

Modern elevator music is often formed in two ways. The simplest way is to remove the vocals from an appropriate track and use just the music. The second way is to buy or pay a musician to record a nice soothing piece of music that can be used. Some minor music companies specialize in producing and licensing elevator music.

One musician who nearly became a muzak recorder was Jimmy Page. Before forming Led Zeppelin and joining the Yardbirds, he was a prolific and much sought-after session musician. Jimmy Page is quoted as saying, “I finally called it quits after I started getting calls to do Muzak. I decided I couldn’t live that life anymore; it was getting too silly.”

The idea of elevator music occurred to Squier when he was in the military. His idea for wired wireless formed one of his 60 patents. From 1911 onwards, he developed the idea of selling music or radio through wires instead of wirelessly. Radio listeners did not take up the idea as their wireless radio was free.

So he changed course and offered the service to companies for their offices and lifts. The idea he proposed was that calming music would help people work better and improve productivity. The sales tactic worked and elevator music was born. In 1934, he liked the idea of Kodak’s invented name so much he changed his company’s name from Wired Radio to Muzak.

An example of a song commonly used in elevator music is “The Girl from Ipanema” by Antonio Carlos Jobim. It became somewhat of a muzak cliché and was even referenced by by “The Blues Brothers.” Music by Brian Eno, Percy Faith and Ray Conliff is also commonly used as elevator music.

The style is heavily linked to music genres such as easy listening and instrumental music. Elevator music, whether pumped into an elevator or an office, utilizes soft-sounding instruments and rhythms. Instruments include keyboards, subtle orchestras and synthesizer music.

Elevator music has been criticized by music elites. Jimmy Page was not the only one who thought a career in muzak was the wrong direction for a guitarist to take. Others have criticized it for being dehumanizing, or worse, not music at all.

Academic research into music suggests that Squier might have been onto something. Studies have been conducted into the negative effects of rap and heavy metal on teenagers. On the flip side, soothing and calming music such as muzak creates a positive environment for workers. Play lists are often grouped together with the intended effect of stimulating employees.