You come upon more than the aroma of polish or fresh coffee when you slip through any hotel door. There is usually some music playing; occasionally it is a soft hum of guitar and other times a faint trickle of piano. Though almost anyone discusses it, the background music frames your complete hotel experience and slips into your brain before you are aware of it.

Not too long ago, I was in a contemporary hotel drinking morning coffee in the breakfast nook. The peaceful mood was broken suddenly by an explosion of 1980s synth-pop. My spoon stopped in middle stir. That startling moment helped me to see that background music can be rather cleverly chosen. It must comfort, stimulate, and mix—all without starring itself on the stage.

Volume ranks close to the top of the staff’s list of concerns. Individuals carry bags. Rings are phones. The music must hover above everyone, just enough to cover the uncomfortable silences; it never calls for center stage. A good playlist is like a non-intrusively invisible host—present, friendly.

It also relates to choosing the appropriate tastes. While resorts might gravitate toward pleasant acoustic melodies, each hotel pulses with different rhythms; elegant city hotels flourish on beats that stimulate without overwhelming. You know how terrible things might go if you have ever grimaced at heavy metal after a spa treatment or at soaring opera during supper.

More importantly, the song must change with the day. Sunup, then, is cheerful, upbeat songs. Come dusk, everything settles down to allow jazz or soft folk. Hotel teams move between song lists, ensuring the music keeps pace with changing emotions, not only blast a playlist and clock off.

Every area of the earth sends guests with their individual tastes. Most venues so keep soft vocalists, soft instrumentals, and low-key genres. The concept is to create a bridge across cultures with music everyone can fit into, independent of where home might be.

Some locations even bring outside experts—people with large music archives and an ear for precisely merging genres. Staff members have also been known to pay silent wars over songs, bantering and trading stories. (Please—no more “Eye of the Tiger” at check-in).

There there is the legal back-and-forth. While Apple Music and Spotify could be appropriate for your phone, hotels have to go legitimate and follow exclusive corporate streaming policies. Otherwise, they run more danger than only a bad rating.

Music has a cunning approach of getting into memory. You will forget the reception counter, most likely ignore the carpeting, yet weeks later a particular song will bring you back into that lobby, morning sun shining through enormous windows.

So pay attention the next time you pass the front desk of the motel. Carefully selected, the soft music has every note like a little prod urging you to relax at home. Funny how one song may bind a whole trip together, right?