[Column] Steve Jobs and Jonathan Ive - Resonance between sound and design
Column en Apple Design Mac iPod![[Column] Steve Jobs and Jonathan Ive - Resonance between sound and design](/../assets/images/column-steve-jobs-jonathan-ive.webp)
Prologue: Shaking beats, bouncing bass—what is UK garage?
Text: mmr｜Theme: Tracing the changes in the duo’s music views, design philosophy, and product line based on primary materials and reliable testimonies.
Among the many products Apple has created, the design surrounding “sound” has always been at the center of it. The collaboration between Steve Jobs and Jonathan Ive goes beyond mere product design. A new culture of fusion of music and technology was born.
“Music is one of the purest forms of expressing who we are.” — Jonathan Ive (from the podcast “Life in Seven Songs”, 2024)
Chapter 1 Records and the California Air
Steve Jobs was a product of the California counterculture of the late 1960s and 1970s. His admiration for Bob Dylan and the Beatles from a young age is confirmed by numerous biographies.
In Walter Isaacson’s biography “Steve Jobs” (2011), his living room has a tube amplifier and a record player. It is said that he listened to albums by Bob Dylan and Joan Baez every night.
“Dylan’s words have soul. They are not the sounds of a machine.” — Steve Jobs (from a 1982 interview)
Music was not just a hobby for Jobs, but an art that bridged the gap between humans and machines.
Chapter 2 I”ve”s aesthetics and tranquil sound
Jonathan Ive is from London. After studying industrial design, he joined Apple in 1992. His aesthetic sense is rooted in Bauhaus rationalism, but he also has a deep obsession with sound.
In his 2024 podcast, Life in Seven Songs, he shares seven songs that have shaped his life. These include U2”s “40” and The Temptations” “Papa Was a Rollin” Stone”. It is clear that he has a special affinity for the ““thickness” and ““temperature” of analog sounds.
“Music, like products, is an art that creates shapes in space.” — Jonathan Ive (2024)
The company he founded after leaving Apple is LoveFrom. In 2023, the group collaborated with luxury audio brand LINN to redesign an analog turntable. This minimalist and sophisticated product embodies his “respect for sound.”
Chapter 3 Jobs and the Music Revolution - From iTunes to iPod
In 2001, Apple introduced a product that defined the era of digital music.
The iPod represents the fusion of both Jobs” and Ive”s aesthetics. Jobs said, ““1000 songs in your pocket.’’ Ive focused on the ““finger tactility’’ of wheel operation.
The arrival of the iTunes Store (2003) marked the first revolution in music consumption since the record era. Jobs’ prediction that ““the music industry will be saved by software’’ is coming true.
“Delivering music legally and digitally is the greatest respect for musicians.” — Steve Jobs (2003)
Chapter 4 “Musical Structure” of Design
What Jobs and Ive have in common is that they viewed music structurally. Jobs spoke of “repetition and order” like Bach’s fugue, Ive’s core design was to “retain functionality in silence.”
Power Macintosh silhouette
The Power Mac G4 Cube (2000) designed by Ive looked like a silent speaker. Fanless structure, transparent acrylic exterior, interior light design── The tranquility was the embodiment of “silence in order to listen to sound.”
Chapter 5 Integration of Mac and music production
Apple’s machines evolved not just as digital devices, but as tools for music production. The advent of GarageBand (2004) ushered in an era in which anyone could create music.
Furthermore, the MacBook Pro (2006-) adopted a resonance design that utilizes the aluminum casing for sound reproduction. Ive says, ““The casing itself shapes the sound’’ (Fast Company interview, 2015).
Chapter 6 From records to the cloud - inheritance of sonic memories
When Jobs talked about his iCloud concept, he dreamed of ““a world where music can be played no matter where you are.’’ At its root is the concept of the cloud as an extension of the act of picking up a record and dropping the needle.
On the other hand, Ive through LoveFrom, We are pursuing ““tactile sound,’’ which is the opposite of cloud computing. The vectors of these two people seem to be contrasting, but In fact, they are united by the philosophy of ““setting people free through music.’’
Chapter 7 Design chronology of the two (relationship between main products and sound)
| Year | Products | Main Designer | Sound Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | iMac G3 | Jony Ive | Integrated speaker design. Emphasis on “openness” of sound |
| 2000 | Power Mac G4 Cube | Jony Ive | Fanless structure, symbol of silence |
| 2001 | iPod | Ive + Jobs | “Music in your pocket” revolution |
| 2003 | iTunes Store | Jobs | Renovating the music distribution business |
| 2004 | GarageBand | Apple | Popularizing music production |
| 2007 | iPhone | Ive + Jobs | Music playback device integration |
| 2015 | Apple Music | Apple | The turning point to streaming |
| 2023 | Linn Sondek LP12 LoveFrom Edition | LoveFrom | Return to analog sound |
Chapter 8 The design language of “sound”
After Jobs passed away, Ive described him as follows.
“He looked at products the way you listen to music: there”s rhythm, there”s harmony, there’s silence.”
Ive himself calls the design work he continues with LoveFrom a “sound process.” In other words, design is not only a visual art, but also an act of constructing sound.
Chapter 9: Echoes of a quiet revolution
The “startup sound”, “click sound”, and “silence design” of Apple products are It was all the result of a sonic collaboration between Jobs and Ive.
The philosophy of sound they created remains at the core of music even today in the age of AI. Through music and design, they brought technology back to human sensibilities.
Conclusion - Sounds that start with love (LoveFrom)
LoveFrom’s official statement reads:
“We are a creative collective. We design for love, not for markets.”
The philosophy of “designing for love” echoes the spirit of Jobs. Just as music breathes soul into technology, Design also continues to play the “sound” of love.
References/Sources
- Isaacson, Walter. Steve Jobs. Simon & Schuster, 2011.
- FastCompany: Jony Ive”s first hardware project post-Apple, 2023
- Wikipedia: iPod, Power Mac G4 Cube, GarageBand
- Far Out Magazine: Steve Jobs” favorite songs
- Ultimate Classic Rock: Bob Dylan shared songwriting stories with Steve Jobs
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