Special attention was paid to the role that music plays in productivity at Amsterdam’s newest location near the city’s Westerpark for co-working space provider Spaces. Hand-curated playlists made by music agency Kollekt.fm can be individually accessed throughout via special signage, allowing users to listen to playlists which can help boost productivity, encourage focus or enable relaxation.

Co-working spaces are known for their agile approach to work. Brands like Spaces, which has locations all over the world, provide a variety of well-designed work areas to accommodate workers’ needs from individual focus time to calls and group meetings. A marked emphasis has been placed on holistically creating an environment conducive to positive, productive work instead of focussing merely on the functional and useable elements of a workspace.

Music agency Kollekt.fm has curated playlists for co-working space provider Spaces, intended to facilitate focus, productivity, mask background noise, and more.

Though all the senses are closely considered in crafting a dynamic workspace, what we hear and the way we hear it can have a make-or-break effect. Though co-working affords individuals convenient access to modern office infrastructure, these spaces are shared. The sound of others talking may inhibit focus or disrupt important meetings and calls. This is where music steps in. It encourages certain behaviours by serving as an environmental cue. It can mask ambient background noise just as well as it can encourage productivity and focus or relaxation. After all, research shows that 90 per cent of workers perform better when listening to music.

However, the right set of playlists which enhance the agility of co-working spaces doesn’t just appear. Music agency Kollekt.fm has curated specific playlists for Spaces, featured in its different locations around the world, to do exactly this.

Kollekt.fm's curated playlists can be accessed throughout the co-working space via special signage which allows users to link with them directly through their smartphones.

At the newest Spaces location in Amsterdam, situated just a stone’s throw away from the city’s Westerpark, the music curator worked closely with the space’s designer Bs;bp and Spaces to craft specific playlists and include infrastructure to allow the co-working space’s users to directly and individually access them. The space is studded with specially designed signage equipped with NFC technology where users can tap their phones to link their phones to the balanced Spotify playlists – the same technology used for mobile payment methods.

Nine unique playlists are found throughout corresponding with the different types of spaces. Silent areas are kitted with playlists intended to stimulate focus while audio for mindfulness and relaxation is accessible in soundproof booths to prioritize wellbeing. For example the Jazzy Beats playlist is designed for hyper focus featuring jazz instrumentation of very calm hip-hop beats, while another playlist for productivity titled Soothing Voices features songs with stripped down acoustic instrumentation and soft vocals.

Nine different playlists can be found throughout Spaces Westerpark, which have been carefully placed with an area that corresponds with its intended mood.

A Day at Spaces is a scheduled playlist intended to change through the course of the day. Designed by Kollekt.fm’s curator Tymon Bijlhout, the playlist becomes increasingly more energetic as the day progresses ­– energy shifts are planned for the mid-morning and late afternoon – encouraging workers to focus and find motivation while remaining in the background.Users are free to tune into the playlist over the sound system or plug into their own to find the right mood that matches their needs.

Co-working spaces offer an agile working environment which goes beyond just providing spaces for productivity. Kollekt.fm’s carefully designed playlists contribute to the comprehensive cultivation of a positive, productive and healthy work atmosphere activated by music.