When You Listen to Music, You’re Never Alone

Gustav Klimt, Schubert at the Piano II, 1899
"On a late spring evening in 2015, at South Street Seaport, a square on the southern tip of Manhattan, hundreds of people slipped on headphones and slipped into their own worlds. It was a clear night, perfect for a stroll, but attendees weren’t interested in local shops and restaurants. They were too busy dancing silently to the music, tuning in—or tuning out—to a 'silent disco.' The silent disco is a concert that passersby can barely hear, and that attendees can customize with a flip of the switch. At this event, a wireless signal allowed dancers to choose their favorite of three playlists. Each pair of headphones covered the ears and gave off a robotic glow. 'This is what we’ve been reduced to: dancing with ourselves,' one dancer told a reporter from The New York Times. ..."
Nautilus