A (7:12)

Departure melodies.

D (7:22)

That is the sound outside of my Los Angeles home, where my wife and I live, next to the subway train, like, less than 20 yards away from the train. So not only can we hear the sound of the train moving down the tracks, we can often hear this, the musical tones alerting passengers to their stop. I'm familiar with these sounds that exist in subway cars in other cities I've lived, like Washington, D.C. and New York, which is why the first time I boarded a subway car in Tokyo, I was taken aback by their version of these tones. It was a full musical idea, fully realized, and surprisingly catchy. So I took out my phone to make a better voice memo of it at the next station. But when we got to the next station, the melody was completely different. And at the next station, another new musical idea. These were all different from one another and different from the repetitive themes I'd heard in every other subway I'd been in. It felt like these never repeated. And what I learned was this is entirely the point.

B (8:45)

Hasha melody, which translates as train departure melody, is something that's unique to every train station or every train line, and it's typically four to seven seconds long.

D (9:02)

That's Rika Ino. Rika lives in San Francisco, but she grew up in Japan. She's a cultural entrepreneur and the founder of Sozo, a contemporary arts agency. Sozo is a Japanese word that means both imagine and create, depending on how it's written.

B (9:17)

So there's a composer that has composed hundreds, I believe, of these melodies, designed to grab your attention without startling you, and they are a part of everyday Japanese life.

D (9:32)

That composer is Minoru Mukaia, and while he wasn't the first, he's by far the most prolific producer of these departure melodies you hear at each station. Mukaia first gained recognition as the keyboardist in the band Cassiopeia in the 1980s. But his path to train melody composer is a bit circuitous. He actually developed a train simulator software, not unlike a video game, for conductors to practice and learn on. Within the simulator, he started embedding these unique melodies for each station. Eventually, the idea caught on, and he was commissioned to create melodies for every station. His process involves visiting each station and considering things like local history, attractions, and demographics. If a station is close to an older population, for instance, he'll use more traditional instruments. And for stops near schools, he'll use more contemporary sounds.

B (10:22)

Train stations are like mini cities within what is the largest city in the world by metropolitan population. So the sounds you hear on these tracks are like part of that orderliness, that sort of organized chaos, just sort of gently nudging you along to go about your life. It's like the best form of public art, really.

D (10:49)

To date, he has created over 200 melodies for over 100 stations. And while this meticulous approach to train music may seem unusual when compared to other subway systems around the world, Rika notes that it's rooted in concepts that are deeply embedded throughout Japanese culture.

B (11:05)

First of all, there is a Japanese philosophy called komakai koto, which is details. This concept that values attention to small things and small gestures. Combine that with omotenashi, which is the concept of hospitality. This sort of essential component of our culture, being that mundane, is treated with utmost care and reverence. The other thing that I think is also intrinsic to the Japanese culture is this notion of orderliness, that there is an extreme care towards harmony. Yeah, that's a pretty special thing. These melodies, to me, they do evoke a sense of care.

D (12:06)

Thank you to Rika, Ino and Sozo. This episode was produced by ryan Holiday.

A (12:12)

Story 3 the Whispering Guitar.

E (12:30)

When I.

F (12:30)

Wrote music for the characters Tonio and Juliana, I knew they had to have guitars. Not one, but two. Like two voices that know each other, that respect each other, that accompany one another. I wanted those guitars to speak the way people who love each other speak. For as long as I can remember, there was a sound that filled my home. It was the sound of my dad's guitar. My dad isn't a professional musician. He's a surgeon. And like any good surgeon, he always kept his fingernails perfectly short. That, though it might seem trivial, changed everything. The strings of his guitar didn't sound like those of a professional guitarist. They didn't have that sharp brightness or power. They sounded different. For reference, let me show you how a standard interpretation of Bilancico de Navidad by composer Agustin Barrios Van Gore would sound. What we just heard was played with long fingernails. Now, for comparison, here's my dad playing the same fragment. It's softer, rounder, sweeter, as if the guitar was whispering. I grew up with that sound. It was the music of my home, the music of my father. And now? Now every time I compose for guitar, I try to emulate it. I do it without thinking, as if that memory had settled into my head and my fingers. Over the years, I became a composer. I learned to play the guitar. And that sound, soft and perfect, sweet and full of soul, is still the one that inspires me the most. This audio story was produced, recorded and mixed by Santiago de la Paz Cardona. The music featured in this piece was composed by Camilo Rinconianine and Agustin Barrios Mangore. Guitar performances by Nicolas Rivera, Camilo Rincon and Luis Carlos Rincon. Voice narration by Santiago Alvarez Martinez Created with love for the listeners of 20,000.

A (15:53)

Hz after the break Forbidden Church Bells and the winning story of this year's SoundOff competition. Like most people these days, I do plenty of online shopping, and every so often I come across an online store that just works. It loads quickly. The product images look immaculate, the checkout is simple and seamless. Now, I know not everyone pays as close attention to this stuff as I do, but even if you aren't thinking about it, you can feel it behind the scenes. It's not magic, it's infrastructure. And increasingly, that infrastructure is Shopify. Shopify powers millions of online stores around the world, from tiny side hustles to global brands. With Shopify, you can design beautiful web stores that fit your brand. You can track orders, manage inventory, and sell via email and social media. Turn those dreams into and give them the best shot at success with Shopify. Sign up for your $1 per month trial and start selling today at shopify.com 20k that's shopify.com 20k shopify.com 20k Congratulations to Keith McNeil for getting last episode's mystery sound right. That's The Pixar lamp, aka Luxo Jr. Jumping on top of the letter I in the iconic Pixar opening sequence. That animation actually came from a short film that Pixar made back in 1986, where a cute little lamp hops around on a desk while its parent lamp watches. The sounds were created by legendary sound designer Gary Rydstrom, who recorded the springs of real lamps and the squeaks of light bulbs being screwed in and out of sockets. Many of these original sounds were reused for the Pixar animation we all know today, and here's this episode's mystery sound. If you know that sound, submit your guess at the web address mystery.20.org anyone who guesses it right will be entered to win a super soft 20,000Hz T shirt. One of the most important decisions you'll make in any business is who you hire next, because the right person doesn't just check boxes. They bring clarity, energy and momentum to everything you're building. But finding that person? That's where things get tricky. Fortunately, there's indeed, indeed takes the entire messy hiring process and distills it into a simple, streamlined platform. You can post a job, get matched with candidates, schedule interviews, and manage the entire pipeline all in one place. And with their Sponsored Jobs option, your post jumps to the top of the page for relevant candidates so you can reach the right people faster. There's no need to wait any longer. Speed up your hiring right now with Indeed, 20,000 Hz listeners will get a $75 job credit. To get your jobs more visibility@ Indeed.com Hertz just go to Indeed.com Hertz right now and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Indeed.comHertz terms and conditions apply. Hiring Indeed is all you need In a world of emails, your business phone is still more important than you might think. It's the voice your customers hear when they call with question. It's the text thread where a deal gets hashed out, and it's often the first impression someone gets of your company. But if you're using your personal number or juggling multiple lines, things can get messy fast. That's where OpenPhone comes in. OpenPhone gives you a dedicated business line that works across your computer, tablet, or phone. You can call, text and even send files, all from one inbox that can be shared with your team. That means you and your team can collaborate on conversations, follow up faster, and never miss an important lead. Plus, OpenPhone's AI agent can be set up in minutes to handle calls and answer questions after hours. OpenPhone is offering our listeners 20% off your first six months at openphone.com 20K that's O P E N P-H-O-N-E.com 2 0K and if you have existing numbers with another service, OpenPhone will port them over at no extra charge. Open Phone no missed calls, no missed customers Story 4 Jimmy and the Bells.

G (20:48)

This is a true story of when I was a kid. It's about how my brother Jimmy and I almost got in really big trouble for waking up an entire town. All thanks to a tiny keyboard. When I was eight years old, my older brother Jimmy, who was 10, was always in charge. If I didn't do what he said, I paid the price. We were altar boys at St. James Parish in Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania. One winter morning, we were scheduled to serve at the 6am Mass. But on that day, Jimmy woke me up at five. 30 minutes early. Mikey, get up. Why so early? Get up. I knew better than to argue. We put on our clothes and trudged through the snow, arriving first. Jimmy, what are we doing? Jimmy grinned. Mikey, Today we're exploring. We weren't looking to steal anything, just fascinated by all the off limits places. So we did explore drawers, closets, hidden staircases, anything without a lock. Then, near the sanctuary, hidden right there in plain sight, was the huge church organ we had never really noticed before. It loomed. Massive, humongous, multi, tiered, covered with knobs, petals, gizmos, doodads. It looked like a spaceship. But then, next to this beast was a tiny keyboard. Like the big one had a little sidekick. Jimmy flipped the switch to on and there was an electric hum. Jimmy hesitated. Then he pressed a key. We froze. That wasn't the organization. That was the bell tower. The one that had never ever been used as an alarm clock. The voice inside me screamed, run. The voice inside Jimmy screamed again. Holy moly. We were in so much trouble. I wanted to yell, stop. But my mouth forgot how to work. And then Jimmy got quiet. He focused in and did it. Yep, my brother Jimmy played shave and a haircut on the church bells. Some folks wake up to roosters. On that day, Wilkinsburg woke up to Jimmy. Then we heard, who's in here? Our stomachs dropped. We were dead. We bolted down the hall, down the stairs, out the back door, into the freezing cold air. Halfway home, Jimmy grabbed my arm. Mikey, wait, wait, wait. We have to serve mass. Go back. Was he joking? Uh, no. No, he wasn't. On the way, he laid out his strategy. Deny everything. We got back to church, opened the door, and Father Murphy was standing right. They're furious. We acted as innocent as well as altar boys. Good morning, Father. How are? Lovely day, isn't it? Father Murphy glared. Were you boys in here earlier? No, Father. But why? He narrowed his eyes and paused. Then he said, never mind.

F (24:31)

Get ready.

G (24:32)

We did. That day, Jimmy made me swear never to tell anybody. And I never did. Until now. Because I just found out that there's a 50 year statute of limitations on pinky swears. Who knew?

A (24:54)

And now, the winner of our first soundoff competition. The language we built.

E (25:01)

Sound is my world. My name is Francois Benandry. I live in Montreal, where I work as a sound designer, music producer, and creative director. When my son was born, he had congenital glaucoma, a rare disease that affects vision. From birth, his world was always a little blurry. But sound. Sound became everything for him. And it just so happens that sound is my professional field. After all, it became the way we connected. When he was very young, he spoke so fast and so well. He sounded like a little adult. Sometimes he would express himself with these precise Rich words, almost too big for his small size. At home, we invented stories. I would sometimes read him books. But the pictures, they didn't really hold his attention. What mattered to him was sound. We would create characters, make funny voices, invent entire worlds just by imagining. One of our favorites was Mr. Potato Head. In our world, Mr. Potato Head was a bit different. He drove a Mini Cooper and often took the subway. Speaking of the subway, it quickly became his real world passion. We would spend afternoons just riding the trains, watching, listening. There are two kinds of vehicles on the STM network in Montreal. The Mr.73 and the Azure, the newer, sleeker model. He could recognize them even before seeing them, just by the way they sounded. He would just sit there, listening to everything, every little sound. One day, I decided to build him something special. A blue soundbox, painted like the stm, with big colorful buttons, built around a little Arduino circuit I had set up. Each button played a different metro sound. The doors opening, the motor starting, and the voice calling the stations. When he pressed those buttons, he wasn't just playing. He was traveling, imagining, building his own journeys. We also spent a lot of time around the old Wurlitzer piano at home. It was right next to the kitchen table. Sometimes, to help him eat, I'd start playing a few chords. And together we'd invent little songs, silly lyrics, all improvised. And every time, I would record those moments on my phone. Children grow up so fast. Most people keep photos to remember those early years. But for me, I realized it was the recordings that captured it best. His little voice, his laughter, captured forever in sound. Later on, I had the opportunity to create something deeply meaningful. The sound identity for the new REM network, a brand new extension of Montreal's transit system. While working on the REM sound, I dreamed of one day adding it to his blue box. While designing it, I thought about him, about those afternoons, about how sound shaped his world. I asked him, what should the REM sound like? At first, he was imitating the STM metro melody. But then he added a few more notes, as if he was continuing the story. And I realized it was actually a really good idea. The REM is, after all, an extension of the STM network. So that's what I did. I created something that felt like a continuation. The melodic phrase that could follow in the same scale. And when we presented it to the client, they liked the concept. And funny enough, when the REM team was looking for the voice to announce the stations, they chose Caroline Davernous, who happens to be the daughter of Michel delaurier, the voice everyone knows from the stm A daughter continuing her mother's voice. Just like I was continuing something with my son through sound. It felt meaningful. Today, when I think back, I realize we don't just have photographs of those years, we have recordings, little audio treasures. Moments captured forever not as images, but as sound. It seems like for us, sound became a landmark. A landmark in a world he can see less clearly. Unfortunately for me, it's my job, but it's also a bond of love with my son. It's sound that has allowed us, since he was born to build something truly unique together. Foreign.

A (30:10)

20,000 Hz is produced out of my sound agency, Defacto Sound. Hear more by following Defacto Sound on Instagram or by visiting defactosound.com this episode.

E (30:21)

Was written and produced by the incredible listeners of 20,000 hertz.

A (30:26)

It was story edited by Casey Emerling.

D (30:28)

With help from Grace East.

A (30:30)

It was mixed by Jade Dicke and Colin Devarney with original music by Wesley Slover. A huge thanks to everyone who submitted a story for our Sound off competition. This first one was such a success that we're going to make this a recurring event for 20,000 hertz. So start thinking about the sound story you'd like to tell and stay tuned for details about the next round. Finally, take a moment to subscribe to my YouTube channel, Dallas Taylor MP3 over there. You can join me on behind the scenes trips to incredible audio locations with all kinds of talented people. You can also find these stories on Instagram and TikTok under that same name. Dallas Taylor MP3 thanks for listening. Before we go, I want to tell you about the latest video over on my YouTube channel. This week I've been at Apple headquarters for their annual event where they announce their latest products and features. As of me recording this, I don't know exactly what they're going to announce, but by the time this promo airs I'll have a new video up where I break down those announcements and what they mean for the world of audio. To see it, just search for Dallas Taylor MP3 on YouTube or tap the link in the show notes. You can also find clips on my Instagram and TikTok channels which are under that same name. DallasTaylor MP3 thanks.