As the golden age of nightclubs ends, a completely different type of business is taking root around the world. Vinyl records playing on hi-fi speakers are now replacing the loud tunes of DJs. Also, a new trend is being seen of people listening to music silently instead of the dance floor. The bar ‘Space Talk’, which will open in 2024 in the Clerkenwell area of London, has presented its hallmark. Before opening this bar, which looks like a wooden spaceship, the owner assembled a team of architects, designers and sound engineers to make the atmosphere lively. Space Talk is not an isolated example. It is one of a number of venues inspired by Japan’s age-old tradition of ‘Ongaku Kissa’, i.e. music café, which the world now knows as ‘Listening Bar’ or ‘Hi-Fi Bar’. The first ongaku kiosks in Japan opened in the 1920s, where people listened to classical, tango or swing music on gramophones while drinking tea and coffee. After World War II, the era of jazz came to an end, when these cafes, stocked with expensive imported records and audio equipment, were the only way for music lovers to hear artists like Miles Davis and John Coltrane. Now this model is emerging as a new business incarnation in Western countries, South America and Africa. Most of these venues have opened in the last decade. Kawasaki Toshiya, who runs his own listening bar in Tokyo, compares it to ‘meditating in a temple’, although Western versions do not have as strict a silence requirement as Japan. At New York bar ‘All Blues’ guests are simply requested to ‘let the music do the talking’, while Space Talk has banned photos and videos. According to Nick Dwyer, director of a documentary made on Tokyo’s music cafes, the real magic of ongaku kissa culture is that it creates an environment where music can touch a person deeply. He says that the new age venue owners have adapted this formula as per their own, making it fit the mood of everywhere from London and New York to Barcelona. Overall, an old, slow tradition in Japan is now shaping up to be a solid and profitable nightlife business model in cities around the world – investing in silence and sound quality, not noise. Jim Hanmer, co-founder of London’s listening bar ‘Jaju’, says that even a record you have heard 30 times feels like a brand new tune in this environment. These three big reasons are being counted for the new business trend: 1. Japan’s growing craze – A record 43 million foreign tourists will reach Japan in 2025. From video games to fashion, Japan has long been a trendsetter for the world. 2. Amidst the declining nightclub culture, listening bars are offering a stylish and comfortable option – neither the compulsion to stay up late at night nor the fear of a hangover the next day. 3. Highly personalized and curated experiences – Jim Hanmer, co-founder of London’s listening bar ‘JaJu’, went to Japan to watch jazz in a personalized and curated experience before getting into this business.
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Listening Bar; Japan’s 100 year old tradition is now business: Demand for an environment like meditation in the temple increased, where music can touch the human being.
