International Journal of Advertising

The Quarterly Review of Marketing Communications

ISSN: 0265-0487 (Print) 1759-3948 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rina20

Music, and Advertising

David S. Dunbar

To cite this article: David S. Dunbar (1990) Music, and Advertising, International Journal of
Advertising, 9:3, 197-203

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02650487.1990.11107148

Published online: 02 Mar 2015.

Submit your article to this journal

Article views: 1

View related articles

Citing articles: 2 View citing articles

Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at

http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=rina20

Download by: [University of Sussex Library] Date: 17 October 2016, At: 10:05
International Journal of Advertising, 1990, 9, 197-203

Music, and Advertising

David 5. Dunbar
J. Walter Thompson, London, UK
Music is a complete language which can communicate very powerfully with the
senses and the emotions. It is widely used in television advertisements, for a
variety of purposes. But its use is rarely built into creative planning in the initial
stages and it is often an afterthought. Virtually no planned research has been
carried out into its effective use, although research methods are known and
available. Results of a low-cost pilot research study are outlined in this article.

INTRODUCTION

The report of the experiment entitled 'Music in Advertisements for

Unmentionable Products' (Pitt and Abratt, International Journal of Advertising,
1988, 7) was deeply disappointing, on two levels.
First, it appears that the only other academic contribution to this subject
continues to be G. J. Com's experiment in 1984.
The proportion of television commercials which have no music or sound on
their sound-track - apart from voices - is very small. The proportion of
commercials which use more music than words is substantial. Yet this obviously
key element is still ignored in published studies of advertising, and has yet to be
researched properly.
The second source of disappointment is, therefore, that Pitt and Abratt were
unable to add anything to our knowledge of the subject. Their experiment was
flawed by a number of practical considerations.
(a) choosing music tracks on the basis of 'most liked' and 'most disliked': the
choice of music has to be relevant to the desired communication;
(b) placing their subjects in a situation where the music is the dominant
stimulus, instead of the background which it normally occupies;
(c) using still pictures as a proxy for communication or 'advertisement': the
absence of movement or information again focuses attention on the music as
primary stimulus, and the 'product' can be mentally screened out.
The difficulties of using an 'unmentionable' product as the subject of the
experiment are acknowledged by the authors. The idea of using music in
communications about 'unmentionables' - as an alternative to words which
could be offensive - is of course well worth exploring; there are rare examples of
its successful use, as will be seen later on.
Before studying the use of music in advertisements, one needs to understand
more about music as a language. One can then look at how it is used- and how

197
198 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ADVERTISING, 1990, 9

it should be used- in an advertising context. Research into this area is possible,

as will be shown.

WHAT IS 'MUSIC'?

In terms of physics, 'music' is a matter of sound waves produced by vibrations in

the air. Not all such sounds are 'musical': pneumatic drills, jet engines, ambulance
sirens, even babies crying, are generally considered as noise rather than music
(though one has to recognize some difference in personal, subjective judgements).
Mankind has, from the beginning, discovered a vast number of different ways
of intentionally producing vibrations, each with its own characteristic pattern of
sound waves, and therefore with its own individual aural character or
personality. And mankind has taken a further, giant step, by organizing these
sounds into formal patterns. Music is a complex organization of sounds just like
any spoken language, where sounds are made into words and put together with
the aid of grammar, structure, inflection, and so on. Music has its own
equivalents of all of these aids. So, without going into details, it can be said that,
like any human language, music is sounds consciously organized for a purpose:
to communicate.

How, or what, does music communicate? It seems to communicate on three

principal levels.

1. The sensual level

The sheer sound combinations themselves affect both the mind and the body. We
have all, listening to a particular piece of music, felt shivers up the spine; I have
actually seen the hairs on a friend's arm rising in response to a particular musical
situation. Aaron Copland defined it thus: 'the sound element in music is a
powerful and mysterious agent'.
We should not be surprised by this, as it is a theme which recurs throughout
history, linking music with an enormous power over minds, and an essential
element in magic. The word 'charm', a magic token, has its root in the Latin word
'carmen', which also means a song. Examples are plentiful: the sirens of Greek
mythology, the Orpheus myth, the Lorelei of German legend, the Pied Piper of
Hamelin ....
The physical effect of rhythm is an integral part of the sensual power of music,
to the extent that some people distinguish between body music and mind music.
The history of dance is as old as man. Any disbeliever in the power of rhythm
should try waltzing when the band plays a march.

2. Music also communicates at the level of the emotions

To quote Aaron Copland again, 'If I am asked "is there a meaning to music", I
have to reply unhesitatingly "Yes". If I am then asked "Can you state that
meaning in words?" I have to say "No" '. As a language, music has meaning
mainly in terms of emotions, moods, feelings: states of mind. From music being
DUNBAR: MUSIC, AND ADVERTISING 199

played to cows to increase milk yields, through its use in factories, supermarkets
and railway stations to the kind of music you listen to in the car affecting the way
you drive, there are many documented examples of its efficacy in influencing
states of mind. Music feeds and stimulates emotions and makes people more
aware of emotions they have experienced. And it does this across a very wide
range of emotions, with far more accuracy in shades of meaning than any verbal
language.

3. Finally, music also communicates at the intellectual level

Music's attraction for the intellect lies in the way in which the notes themselves
are manipulated, the structure of a piece or the development of a theme, the use
of tone colour and key changes. At this level listening to music parallels, for
instance, the way one looks at architecture or listens to poetry in an analytic
sense. But people can still react to the style, atmosphere, and spirit of highly-
structured music, such as a Bach organ fugue, without the benefit of a doctorate
in music.
Of course, individual responses to music are highly subjective and many
depend on 'conditioning'. Everybody is exposed to a great deal of music from
infancy, consciously or otherwise, frequently in a visual context (cinema and
television), or in the context of special events - Carnival in Rio or· Munich,
family weddings, religious feasts, State occasions, football matches. So music can
very quickly communicate less subjective elements such as location or place,
environment, period of time.
To summarize, music in itself works very powerfully at the sensual and
expressive levels. It is most effective in stimulating, or enhancing, a variety of
emotions/moods/states of mind, over a very wide range and endless shades of
responses. But music cannot, by itself, create physical extremes: music alone will
not make you feel hungry, or sexually stimulated, for instance. To do this it needs
to be joined to other stimuli, such as pictures or words. Listen, for example, to
the tune alone of a popular song that was notorious a few years ago: 'Je t'aime,
moi non plus'. Pleasant and innocuous it is; but when the words are added, one
can understand why the song was banned from public broadcasts.

MUSIC IN ADVERTISING

If music has this immense potential to speak directly and expressively to people
on both emotional and sensual levels, and to reinforce the rational
communication of words, what can it contribute to an advertisement?
In practice of course, the exercise of this potential is limited in the advertising
process. We are not talking about a four-hour Wagner opera, or a half-hour
symphony, or even a three-minute pop song. A sixty-second commercial is the
exception; most often we are dealing with a thirty-second radio or television
commercial, giving twenty-eight seconds of sound track. This means that the
way music is used must be, from the start, more specific, more concentrated,
more single-minded. As one composer of music for advertisements said to me
200 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ADVERTISING, 1990, 9

'you have no time to play yourself in, or to agonize over things. You've got to
establish the communication right away.'
Within these limitations, what can music do for a television advertisement?
Basically, music makes you watch or listen in a different way. It influences the
response to, or the interpretation of, pictures and words.
(a) So, music gives an emotional dimension to a brand. The choice of sound-
track will instantly say that this is a 'big' brand, a market-leader, confident,
or sophisticated; or it is a small brand, uncertain of itself, a me-too product,
ordinary.
(b) In the same way, music gives an emotional dimension to the consumer
proposition. It can make it warm and human, or cold and technical; young
and exciting, or old and safe; it can change an old image, or establish a new
one.
(c) Music modifies the look of the visuals or the sound of the words. It can
enhance the pace, the feel, the life of the communication; or it can destroy it,
change it out of all recognition.
(d) Music is more memorable than words. By itself, it is easy to memorize.
When used as a song or a jingle, it makes the words easier to remember; even
the most banal of scripts becomes memorable when set to the right kind of
music.
This is what music can do in the advertising communication, if it is used well. On
a practical level, how is it in fact used in advertisements?

THE USE OF MUSIC IN ADVERTISEMENTS

Music is used in advertisements in much the same way as in other visual media.
The best place to study both the use and the effectiveness of music in commun-
ication is in big-screen feature films; a very good test is to watch a film such as
Star Wars with the ears blocked - the loss of power and meaning in the visuals
alone is startling. In practice, music is used in advertisements in several ways:
(a) As pure background. This can be to fill in an awkward silence in the sound-
track; to provide a carpet for a voice-over to sit on; to provide continuity
between disparate or disjointed visuals; to hide the seams in the picture edit.
(b) As comment on the pictures. It draws attention to, or enhances, the action
on the screen.
(c) To establish or enhance moods or emotions. This can range from sheer
horror or revulsion to the gentlest or most romantic of moods.
(d) To establish location, or time period. The use of characteristic rhythms or
sounds can almost instantly say 'Caribbean', 'Wild West', 'Scotland',
'Greece', etc. Or it can say eighteenth century, or twenty-first century, or
more specifically the 1920s or the 1950s.
(e) As a brand signature. The musical theme or jingle becomes as much a part of
the total 'brand' as the logo, or pack design.
DUNBAR: MUSIC, AND ADVERTISING 201

(f) To deliver a sales message. Words set to music, as a song or a jingle,

strengthen the message.
(g) To communicate the unmentionable. There are times when the commun-
ication cannot, or should not, be put into spoken words. This is a very rare
use, but an excellent example occurred some years ago in Brazil, in a
television commercial for condoms. The message was put into the form of a
romantic song, and with appropriate visuals it delivered a powerful,
memorable, relevant, and totally acceptable, communication.

HOW MUSIC GETS INTO ADVERTISEMENTS

This powerful and flexible communication tool is, in practice, used in a very
haphazard and unplanned way. Too often, a television film is finished before
anyone even asks about music.
To understand why this is so, the process of creating a commercial has to be
grasped. The sequence is invariably:
1. Words- the original 'script', with verbal descriptions of location and action,
and words to be spoken or written. Once approved the next step is
2. Pictures - turning scripts into storyboard, then real pictures.
3. Sound. This may be recorded during the shoot, or very often added later.
Music, if used, comes last.
Obviously, agency people are literate, both verbally and visually. Clients, too,
are comfortable with words, and visual literacy is growing. But musical
experience or interest, beyond an acquaintance with popular hit songs, in either
agency or advertiser, is a matter of chance.
Yet it is a simple matter initially to produce a brief which includes the element
of music's contribution to the overall communication. Musicians who work in
the advertising business are unanimous in their desire for a clear, simple brief,
outlining the brand personality and describing the task for the music in terms of
mood/emotion/response. Very few are so lucky. Yet more and more current-day
film directors are at least sympathetic to music, and even a pilot track can
influence the way a director shoots a film or the way it is edited.

DOES MUSIC WORK IN ADVERTISEMENTS?

To my knowledge, there has been no quantified or controlled research into the

contribution that music makes to the effectiveness of an advertising communi-
cation. There are two ways of answering the question.

1. Professional judgements
In viewing the finished creative product, the thoughtful advertising professional
can judge what the music does for the whole communication: does the commer-
cial convey a unified impression; do the words, pictures and sound work
together; what is the function of the music and does it fulfil it7
202 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ADVERTISING, 1990, 9

If the work is based on:

• clear objectives
• a clear strategy
• a clear brief
professional judgement and experience can be used to decide how closely the final
result meets requirements.
But this is still a more or less subjective measure, and post hoc too. Is there a
more objective way?

2. Research
In recent years, much more use of research and testing has been made in many
countries before advertising goes on air. For instance, many more animatics are
tested with pilot sound-tracks, including music.
However, in most briefs for research, the music is rarely mentioned; if it is, the
questions are vague and unfocused. Yet in qualitative group sessions, many
spontaneous comments are made on the music, and it is clearly important to
people. Their views express strong likes and dislikes: for instance, jingles are
generally found to be irritating, trivial and meaningless. But in most cases,
mentions of music are considered peripheral to the main direction of the research;
and since the subject is not covered systematically, it would be dangerous to draw
any serious conclusions from a collation of such results.
The potential, however, for real research into music's effectiveness is
enormous. Researching music is no more, and no less, than a test of
communication, and the same battery of stimuli and questions can be used as in
testing pictures and words.
Some years ago, I was responsible for carrying out a very small-scale pilot
study on the subject in J. Walter Thompson, London. Briefly, we took a piece of
existing film which was beautiful to look at, but in itself had little meaning. We
put six different music tracks to the film, ranging from opera and symphonic
music to current pop music. No words were added to the sound-track, but
Tomorrow is the day' was superimposed on the end frames.
The films were shown - first without sound, then with the different tracks -
to three groups of ordinary working-class housewives from suburban London
aged between 25 and 35 years. We asked them what they felt, what the communi-
cation was, and what might be happening 'tomorrow'.
This was a very simple, low-cost study, without great statistical validity; but
the results were exciting and fascinating.
One generally accepted hypothesis is that music makes one see pictures in a
different way. Here are some of the women's comments:
'Fascinating how one can conjure up different things from the same pictures'
'Amazing what music does to the picture'
'I never realized the difference that music makes to an advert'
'Is the music significant? Yes, oh yes!'
With different music tracks, the original film, peaceful without music, became in
DUNBAR: MUSIC, AND ADVERTISING 203

tum exhilarating, serious, expectant, menacing, frightening, sinister, insecure. As

one woman said, '(tomorrow) has to be bad, whatever it is'.
There was much comment, naturally, on the music itself. Something well-
known, like the flying theme from E. T., got in the way of the communication:
people were too busy enjoying the music, or trying to identify it, to pay attention
to the rest of the communication. Other tracks drew very perceptive comments
such as 'predictable'; 'the sort of music you expect in adverts'; 'the music's wrong,
it doesn't say anything'; 'it didn't go anywhere'.
Most fascinating was this reaction, from several people, to one sound-track we
used: 'If I was out of the room when that came on, I wouldn't bother to find out
what the product is'.
The practical implications of that statement are enormous. The reverse was
stated by another respondent talking about advertisements: 'If I'm in the kitchen,
I know what's on by the music'. This has equally strong implications.
As stated above, this was very much a pilot study, with no claims to statistical
respectability; and it was never followed up on a larger scale. But two working
conclusions are inescapable. First, that music does change the way that people see
things, in other words, the information they take out of the visuals, even in half a
minute. Second, that ordinary people are much more receptive to, and perceptive
about, music in advertisements than we give them credit for.

SUMMARY

One does not have to be a trained musician to accept and realize the power of
music in communication, and the contribution it can make to a piece of
advertising when it is properly used.
Just as words and pictures in an advertisement must work together for
maximum effectiveness, so must the music. Music works best when it is an
integral part of the overall idea.
It is commonplace to agree, in planning new advertising, clear strategies and
creative briefs. The same ought, and can, be done for the music, with a clear
influence on the creative team and the director.
Underlying all this is the thought that, all too often, the contribution that
music makes to good, effective advertising is undervalued. To measure it,
research is available, the techniques are there, and they are known; but they are
not being used.