Allure irrésistible. At a party on Paris’ rive gauche (where the 'intellectuals' with black AMEX cards study...party and shop) a woman’s fur coat (SO 80s, SO démodé) is lifted from her bare shoulders, exposing her neck to the candlelight (what about her face?...tiny candle?) Aware of many eyes upon her ("What a NECK!"), she pauses, smiling to herself, before emerging like a conqueror from the shadows. (Doesn't take much! Sounds like Kim Kardashian, doesn't it?)
Delete the bold type and this is how Frédéric Malle PR describes Music For A While,* the brand's latest perfume. I grunt and roll my eyes as I read the fuddy-duddy copy, but as often happens with this brand (its backstories annoy l'enfer out of me), the fragrance makes me smile and present my (non-black) American Express card at Barneys New York.
Music For A While begins with sharp citrus and tart, greenish/unripe pineapple aromas — a delightful opening. The pineapple changes character in the fragrance's heart and becomes denser and sweeter; let's call it an ambered pineapple. The pineapple has a happy meeting with lavender (at first floral, then leafy, in character). Music For A While's lavender-pineapple accord is delicious; it teeters on the edge of gourmand, like I'm experiencing the scent/flavor of a tiny pineapple tart drizzled with lavender syrup or sprinkled with candied lavender. I also smell hints of a golden raisin scent, vanilla and caramelized sugar.
In its base, Music For A While presents rich pineapple and a dry lavender aroma that veers into evergreen incense territory. I love the beautiful patchouli-pineapple scent as the perfume winds down (which takes a LONG time). Music For A While's lovely, rounded patchouli note reminds me of another Frédéric Malle perfume: Monsieur.
Friends who I let smell Music For A While felt it was more masculine than feminine in character (and I agree). It has sensational sillage and lasting power and just one spray strutted its stuff all day. I'm not at all reminded of Paris or fancy-dress when I wear Music For A While. It brings to mind the hot, mellow smells I always associate with the Santa Ana winds as they roar thru Los Angeles in autumn. I used to love taking long walks in those winds late in the afternoon and enjoying the sensational sunsets they (and their dust) produced. (Why did I leave L.A.?)
Given its richness, I'd never get through a 50 ml bottle of Music For A While; but I'll buy the 10 ml spray as needed to use during hot Indian Summers, whether here in the Pacific Northwest or back in California.
I'm a fan of perfumes that include discernible pineapple. In her post on Jean Patou Colony, Angela recommended that and L’Artisan Parfumer Ananas Fizz (discontinued) as must-have's for pineapple lovers; I'll add Music For A While to that list.
PLEASE let me know if there are other pineapple-rich scents I should try!
Frédéric Malle Music For A While Eau de Parfum is available in 100 ml ($310), 50 ml ($215) and in a 10 ml travel spray ($60).
*Perfumer Carlos Benaïm; listed notes of mandarin, lemon, bergamot, lavender, pineapple, vanilla, labdanum, amber, patchouli.
Note: top pineapple image [cropped and fiddled with] via USDA Pomological Watercolors NAL Digital Collections.
Smell Bent Ice Station Pineapple. Cheap as chips.
PE, I think that one is discontinued, too.
Yes…pineapple and pine.
When I first saw the name of this fragrance, I thought Frédéric Malle was referencing the hauntingly beautiful Henry Purcell song—and I got really excited. The actual marketing copy is beyond disappointing, but the fragrance itself sounds captivating; I look forward to giving this a try!
BC, yes, love that aria. Hope you can try this soon.
I was also disappointed that this had nothing to do with Purcell. Portrait of a Lady was similar bait and switch. The notes sound like a hot mess but I trust Kevin’s judgement that execution shows refinement and panache. Color me intrigued; would like to sample this at some point.
Akimon: but I wonder how a song could be put into fragrance notes? I was thinking of Purcell’s time period and imagine those aromas!! Yikes. Hope you get to sample this…I think it’s beautiful so smelling it while listening to “Music For A While” would work!
If you are using an iconic English Baroque music piece as a reference then you get – pineapple ..? I’m sure this is beautifully done but the contrast between the name and the actual character of the perfume is pretty jarring. As I understand from reading an interview with Malle and Benheim, the name was picked accidently from a music list, very late in the process, and the perfume itself was supposed to recreate 70s Paris. So there, Purcell, Paris, pineapple. Maybe that makes sense to Monsieur Malle. If that’s the case, my hat’s off to him!
I have a small decant of this and also found it very masculine – dry lavender notes always scream “barbershop!” to me. I’m going to give it one more chance but I suspect it’s not really in my wheelhouse. I love pineapple-the-fruit and I love citrus scents, but I guess I’m not sure about pineapple scents . . .
Nicolasix, this lavender was more ‘lavender field’ than barbershop to me (thank goodness).
This one sounds like fun; I’ll have to give it a sniff.
Although it mostly smells like naughty jasmine to me, Acaciosa has a distinct pineapple note and is certainly worth a try.
Liza, goodness knows which Acaciosa version I’ve tried, could have been vintage, but I didn’t get pineapple…too bad! Is your bottle new?
From within the last five years or so.
I have a travel size of this one and am enjoying it.
I wish more fragrances also included a 10 ml size in their line-up.
I do too. I no longer need 100 ml of anything, unless it’s Fendi or Magie Noire. Then I *need* 500 mls. 😉
Smokey/Filomena: it does seem I come across smaller size offerings more and more (Europeans seems to have more choice in that regard right now…with 15 and 30 ml options).
My pick is a polarizing one. I get a GIANT candied pineapple note in the original Angel EdP. YMMV.
J, Angel?! Nooooooooooo! Ha!
I knew that I was treading on dangerous ground!
Oh, Keven, once again I could tell this was your review after reading only a few lines, even before checking the byline. Actually, I could tell just by reading your insertions into the copy.
I think Rhianna’s first perfume was pineapple. At least, I vaguely remembering sniffing it in a department store, and thinking “Pineapple, that’s different, but Rhianna is from the Caribbean isn’t she?”
I think the poor woman in the ad copy went to a party in a fur coat (which I think were actually considered in poor taste in the 80’s) and some one from PETA objected and began to pull the coat (or maybe it was one of those fur scarves) off but not all the way, so it got stuck somewhere around her head. Hence her neck, but not her face was visible. All those staring people were animal rights types, and she tried to cry out, “but smell my Louis Malle perfume which is not tested on animals and uses synthetic music molecules.”
Dilana, ha! And she got some ATTENTION which was what she wanted most of all.
Funny what Jalapeno just commented,because I get a fizzy pineapple note,and rather prominent,from Angel Innocent!
I have Colony in my collection and treasure the mls left.
This sounds like my thing,as I love a good pineapple note!
Johanob…I know, when my bottle of vintage Colony ran out it was sad…that scent always made me happy…for me, this is ‘nostalgic’
I’ve read that Bruno Fazzolari’s Unsettled has a pineapple note.
A joke, courtesy of Persolaise:
‘What are you wearing?’
‘Music for a While’.
‘Oh, and later?’
Uday, ha! And don’t think I’ve tried Unsettled…will have to look it up.
I am not crazy about the beginning of Music For The While (its too chaotic and harsh to me), but as it settles within 1/2 hour is when it smells good. And it seems to actually improve as it dries down on my skin! (Usually I expect most perfumes to do the opposite)
The pineapple note (when it settles) here reminds me a bit of the time my mom grated fresh pineapple and then stewed it as fillings for pineapple tarts (a popular desert for Chinese New Year).
This is a a very strong and long lasting scent. A full bottle is definitely not needed 😀
Gunmetal…agree completely…it got better and better as I wore it.
Love that line “one spray strutted its stuff all day.”! U have such a way with words! But is it sexy, though??
kevtronic: well…I think it’s sexy in an outdoorsy way? Maybe “sex-while-hiking” sexy…sex in the woods or in the middle of a field, that sort of thing.
I recall reading an old magazine article somewhere in which the author rhapsodized about the mystique of her husband’s skin-scent, going on to reveal that this was the product of his chemistry and Caron Pour un Homme (not a fragrance everyone would consider sexy, though I do at times.) Is there any resemblance between the Malle and the venerable PuH?
Also: speaking of fruit notes, I recently tried Caron’s l’Anarchiste, with its rather intensive apple-mint-cinnamon opening. Do you know it?
John: nope…no similarity between this and Pour un Homme. And L’Anarchiste is one that’s “escaped” me all these years…I never/ever come across it.
Histoires de Parfums 1804 has a definite pineapple note. It’s nice, I think, and not too overly sweet.
Thanks! I knew there was another perfume I had smelled with pineapple, but could not remember what it was.
Mary Carol/Jalapeno: ah, yes…I’ll need to retry that one.
As someone who adores Colony and Ananas Fizz, I need to try this!
Smokey: do!
The Santa Ana reference intrigues me. Will have to try this when I’m in a store. Never thought of pineapple and lavender together but you make it sound appealing.
LizzieB: that had not occurred to me either…but they work great together in this one.
I got completely stuck on black Amex cards. What are they? I am clearly not hanging out with really rich people. The Points Guy tells me that I’d have to spend and pay back over $350,000 a year on my Amex card to get an invitation to the black card (which he says is made out of anodized titanium!). Oh. Well, next life!
Ummm…. did you say something about a perfume?
Oakland Fresca: but you LIVE in the land of black AMEX cards! San Francisco, RIGHT?! Come back to earth now…to pineapples and lavender…the simple things!
Oakland, I had to google black Amex.
I tried this recently and it smelled like the lid of canned pineapple juice to me where it settles in the metal ridge and then starts to smell sticky sweet. Fond childhood memories…Wasn’t my thing. I did like the far drydown, like 2 days later, ha!
Worth Courtesan smells like pineapple dominant fruit salad and Ferre edp has some pineapple in the top notes. Both Pierre Bourdon, so I guess he’s a pineapple lover, too.
Elisa: I’ll try to sniff them both…thanks.
Ganache Parfums Pineapple Daiquiri sounds nice, with pineapple and rum, but there’s not much out there in the way of reviews.
Oct: hmmm…never heard of Ganache before!
Great review, Kevin!
One of the first Creed I tried, Aventus, starts of with a mega dose of pineapple, then I don’t remember what happened afterwards.
I need to revisit my sample which the kind SA at the FM boutique sent me a month or so ago.
Hajusuuri: you probably don’t remember the rest of Aventus because it was so dull! (as I remember anyway)
You make this sound very appealing!
I recently tried M. Micallef’s Akowa and thought “pineapple” when I first put it on… even though pineapple isn’t listed as a note.
FearsMice…well, we can never trust listed notes completely.
Kevin, love your writing.. always fun and interesting to read. For me the pineapple killed it. I found the opening was the best part mainly because the lavender is really lovely, my kind of lavender.
Person I was with when I was wearing it actually found it repulsive ☹️
And my God does it last. Goes on and on like it or, not.
I do appreciate the creativity in mixing notes such as these.
floragal: you have to love pineapple to like this one!
I didn’t like this one at all. Tons of lavender, no pineapple and a boring generic amber drydown. I was really hoping for a fruity gourmand lavender pineapple and this definitely wasn’t it. I prefer Ananas Fizz for my pineapple fix.
cazaubon: Robin here at NST also didn’t get huge quantities of pineapple … thankfully I smell it from start to finish.
Yep. Fit with the pineapple “lens” thing in the video, and didn’t really care for any of the rest of it. Did think it was well done though, just not me.
I have really only sniffed it from a sample that a super-generous SA at NM sent me, but Clive Christian No. 1 for women has a strong pineapple note. Way out of reach to buy, though sometimes I am tempted by one of their coffrets. Unfortunately, she doesn’t work there any more. She used to make me up all kinds of samples when I bought something from her.
Sapphire: I never seek out CC scents…truly, I’d never buy one even if I loved it…and so far that’s not happened.
Bond no. 9 Wall Street has a pineapple note. I really wanted to like it but it morphs into a gross 80s masculine cologne – Drakkar Noir/Polo type thing.
sarcon: yes, I did try that awhile back due to the pineapple mention…but I got no pineapple…just “man cologne” like yourself.
I tried this recently and agree that it is very masculine. But its very nicely done – top quality and clever. On me I had a very distinct cinnamon phase which is odd cos it’s not in the note list. And then the pineapple was persistent all the way through, in a very warm and pleasant way. It lasted a bloody long time just from one spray and I think this would be drop dead gorgeous on a man!
Kittymeow: you get your money’s worth on this one for sure! This is a scent that makes me happy…so I’m buying those right and left! HA!