Ottawa’s music scene is getting a little cozier: new ‘listening bar’ set to open in Centretown

CTV’s Tyler Fleming has a look inside ‘FONO’ a new music lounge set to open in Centretown.

A modern music venue is opening in the capital, one that puts listening, not crowd size, at centre stage.

FONO HiFi Lounge, a listening bar at 473 Bronson Avenue in Centretown, is set to open April 10, offering high-fidelity sound, small upscale plates and a relaxed, intimate atmosphere designed for music lovers.

Owner Matías Muñoz says the goal is to create a peaceful community-focused space.

“This place is really meant to kind of calm the mind,” he says.

“We call it Centretown’s living room because we want it to be a place where people feel comfortable in the community here. There has been a lack of space with opportunities for people in the music, community and arts community in general, to be able to access spaces that have a high-quality kind of aesthetic, but also high-quality sound and acoustics inside.”

Tucked beneath thick vines on a century-old building at the corner of Bronson and Gladstone avenues, the new venue blends historic character with a modern-interior design.

Muñoz says the space has been carefully engineered to avoid the typical noise and echo of busy bars.

“You might, recognize in a restaurant or a bar when you go in there and when there’s more than 20 or 30 people in there, it can get really loud and really echoey. You can hear the reverberations of people’s voices, and the music is usually an afterthought,” he says. “So, we kind of flipped the script on that here, where we place the acoustic absorbers and diffusers in the walls and ceiling, and speakers in very strategic locations so that, when the music is on, you’re not screaming to the person next to you.”

Music expert Eric Alper says listening bars, venues built around curated music and high-end sound systems, are emerging in Ottawa, like Cassette Listening Bar on Baseline Road. These bars have also emerged across Canada and globally, even if the concept itself can be traced back to early 20th-century times.

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“The history actually goes back to about 1920 Japan,” he says. “That’s when these boutiques and restaurants and bars used to open up and play music in the background. And the music was actually the most important thing about it.”

Alper says the model is becoming a popular contrast to the rise of more recent large-scale concerts.

“Somewhere around the 2000s everything got bigger. The amount of people standing in the field, ticket prices got bigger, the shows got bigger, and something community-based gets lost in all of that,” says Alper. “To have that community spirit and to have that music consumption that isn’t involving 20,000 people, if there’s 40 people in there, you’re all doing the same thing which is listening to or watching music.”

Muñoz says FONO is also designed to support Ottawa’s arts community, with space for live performances, private events and other intentional gatherings.

“Having the DJ booth built into the bar is also very strategic. We want music to be at the heart of the customer experience here,” he says. “We have an open concept kitchen, very small plates but very elevated dishes that people can enjoy.”

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For Munoz, the goal is simple: to create a high-quality, welcoming space centred on sound and shared experience.

“It has been a really great experience building this place with people that have an investment in music and the arts community in Centertown,” says Munoz.

FONO HiFi Lounge opens to the public April 10.