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How about a hefty dose of nostalgia? On this day in 1995, 30 years ago today, Microsoft released the operating system known as Windows 95. The company had released operating systems and various related tech in the past. But there was something about Windows 95 that was just so big. It was the first of its kind in the Windows 9x family of operating systems for home computers. Mid-90s tech nerds and families alike flocked to purchase it.
Windows 95 was a big deal, with all of its grey and teal goodness. But what does that have to do with music? Well, audio was a pretty important part of this early operating system. And the nostalgic startup sound that will likely trigger auditory memories in the brains of any Gen Xer or older millennial was carefully put together by none other than Brian Eno.
Brian Eno’s Work on Windows 95’s Startup Sound Is Still Legendary Today
Believe it or not, Brian Eno, best known for his experimental works and collaborations with David Bowie, composed the infamous startup sound for Windows 95. Eno’s composition came after Microsoft designers approached the iconic producer for their OS project in 1994.
The end result was a short six-second sound clip that might be the most memorable little piece of electronic music from that year. The clip would be dubbed “The Microsoft Sound” and would replace Windows 3.1’s little “ta-da!” startup sound. That clip would then be used as the shutdown audio for Windows 95.
“The idea came up at the time when I was completely bereft of ideas,” Eno would later say of the project. “I’d been working on my own music for a while and was quite lost, actually. And I really appreciated someone coming along and saying, ‘Here’s a specific problem – solve it.’”
Eno went on to note that Microsoft reps told him that they were looking for “a piece of music that is inspiring, universal, blah-blah, da-da-da, optimistic, futuristic, sentimental, emotional.” And they originally wanted the sound to only be about three to four seconds long.
“I thought this was so funny and an amazing thought to actually try to make a little piece of music,” Eno continued. “It’s like making a tiny little jewel. In fact, I made eighty-four pieces. I got completely into this world of tiny, tiny little pieces of music. I was so sensitive to microseconds at the end of this that it really broke a logjam in my own work.”
This little sound clip is so legendary in tech and music history. In fact, in 2025, “The Microsoft Sound” was selected to be preserved by the Library of Congress in the National Recording Registry. It was selected for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” I certainly agree with that sentiment.
Photo by Brooks Kraft LLC/Sygma via Getty Images
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