An audio reproduction system substantially fits the dynamic range of recorded and broadcast music (or other type of audio content) into a desired output dynamic range, bounded by the available dynamic range of the listening environment. In some scenarios the output dynamic range may be defined as a function of the ambient noise level present in the environment and the maximum output capabilities of audio system. A listener may adjust the desired prominence of the program with a user control, with foreground (louder and more dynamic) as one extreme and background (quieter and less dynamic) as the other extreme. A control to adjust prominence, when used to provide background reproduction, may reduce the average volume of a reproduced signal and fit the input signal dynamic range into a suitably smaller but desired output signal dynamic range.