JAV Battle: Background Music or Silence?

Most JAV I've seen have had little to no music, and the music was typically in an in-between segment or at the beginning, as opposed to during an actual sex scene. That being said, I still think music would fit well in a JAV if used appropriately. We've seen how music used to be utilized in older western pornography, implementing more relaxing, jazzy tunes with no words or roughness to help compliment the sex on-screen. This could be applied to JAV too, albeit perhaps with a twist or style unique to Japanese culture.

Music can also help to elevate or emphasize erotic moments - which is something that I've specifically seen hentai do, which is both creative and can even make moments sexier. Simply increasing the speed or rhythm of the music as the man starts thrusting faster throughout the scene can help viewers get a more "heightened" sense of arousal as the scene goes on. I've seen some hentai where the music dramatically shifts when the guy switches to her butt hole - an effective way of denoting a more serious moment while simultaneously being comical.

Actresses: Ai Aoyama, Harura Mori, Sachiko, Yua Takanashi, Hono Wakana:

Another way to elevate a sex scene through music that I've seen in hentai, and one that I think has been the most effective, is when nearing the climax of the scene, and the music swells as the orgasm approaches, getting higher and higher in note until the very end. I've found that technique to be particularly sexy, and having that used in JAV could possibly be just as erotic. Surely music can be utilized in other ways to help make the sex scenes more erotic or entertaining, as it is known to manipulate emotional reactions. In general, slower beats are deemed more romantic or intimate, and faster ones build anticipation.

Music can also be effective for JAV even when not used specifically for the sex scenes, though I suppose that was obvious. A musical score applied to a scene can help set the emotional tone, whether it be with a soft piano for slow, sensual scenes or synths for a playful/comedic situation. This is doubly effective for JAV that are following some sort of story or plot, as music can help tell a watcher how to feel. Imagine a wife finding out her husband is cheating on her, and the music swells or drones on to emulate the woman's emotional state. These little additions add much more life to the JAV and help to give it a greater level of quality beyond just being for sexual stimulation.

Actresses: Hajime Horiuchi:

JAV or studios can also utilize music to help establish or capitalize on a certain style, like a certain studio could become well-known for producing certain types of scores or music for certain kinds of scenes, helping to make them more iconic. It's like how companies have mascots or tag-lines, and better recognizability makes a brand stand out, even if this is porn we're talking about.

With music being a tool, it can also be effective when it comes to transitioning between scenes - usually from in-between non-sex scenes to the actual sex scenes. Transitions in JAV can be pretty uneventful and lacking in the first place, so a little music or jingle can help spice it up just enough to make it a little interesting. A small effort can go a long way.

Actresses: Noa Haruna:

It might seem obvious that music can make something like JAV better, but seeing as most JAV and porn have had no music for a very long time, there are actually quite a few reasons why keeping a movie set to no music can be a good thing. When the music is absent, other senses and things come front and center that the watcher puts their focus on. Sound is usually the next greatest stimuli, so things like a trembling breath or the sound of wet skin slapping together become much more obvious when there's no sophisticated soundtrack that is audible.

When music isn't present to distract a watcher's mind, the things they are focusing on feel like they have greater significance or meaning - almost like the moment is being given a serious tone. It can also make a sex scene feel more intimate: each breath from the actress could be audible, the smack of skin against skin with kissing or intercourse, such sounds that might not get as much focus if music were playing.

Actresses: Tomo Shiraiwa:

In a way, silence can also make moments feel more realistic, as music is often done in a way to be deliberate, making watchers try and feel a specific emotion at certain times. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but in comparison to silence, the watcher essentially chooses what to feel and when, because their focus is on what's happening in front of them. With music, the whole viewing experience feels more like a performance and not a genuine real moment that you just happen to be a part of and are witnessing.

Silence in a way could be compared to reading a book. A book tells a story through your own mind as you interpret how things look or truly feel because there's a lack of visuals to tell you what those are. Your imagination fills in the gaps, and while many JAV often focus on trying to deliver an authentic, grounded experience that a regular individual could possibly go through themselves, a lack of music is the perfect compliment. Such a fact might have some wondering if the lack of music is really due to budget constraints at all, and merely an actual creative decision.

Actresses: Mea Amami, Sarina Momonaga:

In general, silent scenes feel more serious or suspenseful, and they achieve this in ways music usually can't. For genres like cheating, silence can serve as a way of building lewd anxiety. Such tension is difficult to achieve through music, and every little thing, be it a small breath or creak of the bed, carries weight. Take a kissing scene for instance: without music it almost feels awkward as you hear tongues mashing together, skin-on-skin, and things that typically don't sound very pleasant. Though not exactly glamorous, a silent kissing scene is seductive. A kissing scene with music feels more cinematic, staged, and romantic - almost as if you're watching the climax of a Disney movie.

Even though there are hardly any examples of JAV with music, let alone music during actual sex scenes, I'd have to say JAV would be better off with music! There are just so many dimensions to music, so many genres that can be wielded in all sorts of ways to help make the watcher more emotional about what they are watching, even if it is just porn. I think JAV would benefit greatly from the addition of music because it would add a much-needed layer to make it more complex and meaningful than just a form of sexual gratification.

With just music alone a JAV creator could emphasize a comical sequence, or even fabricate one entirely. It could be used in conjunction with thrusting in a sex scene, making things sexier or highlighting pivotal moments, like switching to the woman's asshole. Sure, it could also make a movie feel more fake and like a performance and less like a genuine moment happening in reality, but entertainment often prides itself on being just a story/piece of fiction, so I think doubling down on it would only help to make it better.

It's not like a JAV with music can't have moments of powerful silence either, and even though silence has its many strengths in conveying a serious scene or helping to put more emphasis on the sound or what is actually happening on the screen, I think music is better at giving the watcher a much greater range of positive benefits that are just too good to pass up. How about you guys? Do you think music would add more to a JAV, or is silence the better option?