A History of Recorded Sound!

There just might (will) be a quiz about all this stuff next period so pay attention.

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One hundred and fifty years ago, there was only one way to enjoy music; you had to make it yourself or listen to someone else make it.

Think about that: there was no way to store music so that you could enjoy it at a later date, and there was no way to document a performance.

December 6, 1877, Thomas Edison walked into the offices of Scientific American magazine to demonstrate a machine called a "phonograph”

Edison Gold Moulded Cylinder made from black wax, ca. 1904. The term 'gold' was a reference to the metal plated onto the master wax cylinder as the first part in the process of manufacturing the mould.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RY7OWOUKH0k

Edison, you see, wasn't much of a music fan. He didn't see the point in recording music.

Edison, you see, wasn't much of a music fan. He didn't see the point in recording music.

Edison finally gave in and his cylinders were soon used to preserve music-but only if he could audition those who wished to be recorded.

Edison, you see, wasn't much of a music fan. He didn't see the point in recording music.

Edison finally gave in and his cylinders were soon used to preserve music-but only if he could audition those who wished to be recorded.

But then Edison developed a terrible hearing problem so that just about everyone who sang for him sounded shrill and awful and were given the big thumbs down.

Emile Berliner who believed sound should be stored not on a round cylinder but a rotating disc

Berliner open to recording music

Emile Berliner who believed sound should be stored not on a round cylinder but a rotating disc

Cylinders: Fragile, difficult to produce, hard to store and had a tendency to melt.

Berliner open to recording music

Emile Berliner who believed sound should be stored not on a round cylinder but a rotating disc

Cylinders: Fragile, difficult to produce, hard to store and had a tendency to melt.

Vinyl: Sturdy, easy to store, harder to break

Berliner open to recording music

Emile Berliner who believed sound should be stored not on a round cylinder but a rotating disc

Edison was out of business and Berliner's turntables were in charge by the end of the 20’s.

Cylinders: Fragile, difficult to produce, hard to store and had a tendency to melt.

Vinyl: Sturdy, easy to store, harder to break

Berliner open to recording music

Music Crisis in 1920’s: Radio

Radio really started to take off in the early 1920s. By Christmas of 1922, the free music you could get from a radio was killing sales of phonographs and phonograph records. That same year, the American Department of Commerce decreed that broadcasting licenses would be given to radio stations only if they promised not to play recorded music.

Music Crisis in 1920’s: Radio

Radio really started to take off in the early 1920s. By Christmas of 1922, the free music you could get from a radio was killing sales of phonographs and phonograph records. That same year, the American Department of Commerce decreed that broadcasting licenses would be given to radio stations only if they promised not to play recorded music.

Record Sales

1922 - $110 million

Music Crisis in 1920’s: Radio

Radio really started to take off in the early 1920s. By Christmas of 1922, the free music you could get from a radio was killing sales of phonographs and phonograph records. That same year, the American Department of Commerce decreed that broadcasting licenses would be given to radio stations only if they promised not to play recorded music.

Record Sales

1922 - $110 million 1932 - $6 million

Music Crisis in 1920’s: Radio

Radio really started to take off in the early 1920s. By Christmas of 1922, the free music you could get from a radio was killing sales of phonographs and phonograph records. That same year, the American Department of Commerce decreed that broadcasting licenses would be given to radio stations only if they promised not to play recorded music.

Record Sales

1922 - $110 million 1932 - $6 million

American Musicians' Union, led a year-long strike in 1942

First high-quality tape machine

Recorded tape was invented by Nazi scientists during the 2nd world war. The Nazis were big on propaganda; they used the magnetophone to record Hitler's speeches and then broadcast different speeches simultaneously from different cities. The allies (who were listening in) were confused because it sounded like Hitler was in two or more places at once.

Advantages of Magnetic Tape:

Advantages of Magnetic Tape:

1. Musicians didn't have to record all their parts at once.

Advantages of Magnetic Tape:

1. Musicians didn't have to record all their parts at once.

2. You didn't have to use the bulky machines that required direct recordings into fussy acetate discs, you could play the recording tape back immediately.

Advantages of Magnetic Tape:

1. Musicians didn't have to record all their parts at once.

2. You didn't have to use the bulky machines that required direct recordings into fussy acetate discs, you could play the recording tape back immediately.

3. You could add special effects such as echo.

Advantages of Magnetic Tape:

1. Musicians didn't have to record all their parts at once.

2. You didn't have to use the bulky machines that required direct recordings into fussy acetate discs, you could play the recording tape back immediately.

3. You could add special effects such as echo.

4. You could edit the music after the recording was done.

1948 – Birth of the LPPeople recording on tape but music was still sold on vinyl.

Albums were called 78’s because they rotated at 78 rpms (rotations per minute)

This meant you could fit very little music on one record. Dr. Peter Goldmark, in order to hear his favourite Brahms concerto uninterrupted, invented the LP. He was able to push the groves closer together, allowing more music to be stored on one disc. It turned at 33 rpm’s, allowing roughly 22.5 minutes of music per side.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D18AujwrQb4

RCA created 45’s, records that played at a different speed and had a giant hole in the middle designed to fit ONLY their record players.

RCA created 45’s, records that played at a different speed and had a giant hole in the middle designed to fit ONLY their record players.

CBS records simply recreated a plastic insert and added a second speed to their turntables.

In the 1960’s people were looking to take their music on the road. Dr. Goldmark convinced at least one automobile manufacturer to offer a record player as an option. It folded down from the dash and played special 16 rpm records. It was a disaster.

The guy who first figured out what to do was William Lear. He designed a cartridge that contained a continuous loop of tape. To play it, you just plugged it into a slot in machine-and enjoy. It was the birth of the eight-track.

The guy who first figured out what to do was William Lear. He designed a cartridge that contained a continuous loop of tape. To play it, you just plugged it into a slot in machine-and enjoy. It was the birth of the eight-track.

Benefits:

Portable, would not skip, durable

The guy who first figured out what to do was William Lear. He designed a cartridge that contained a continuous loop of tape. To play it, you just plugged it into a slot in machine-and enjoy. It was the birth of the eight-track.

Benefits:

Portable, would not skip, durable

Problems:

Could not rewind it, sound breaks when the tape shifted tracks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ul-cZyuYq4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3YyoC_-nQk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGb8KXQGgOQ

Once cassettes started sounding better, Sony began to research how to make them portable. The first Sony walkman was introduced in 1979, quickly signalling the end of the eight-track.

In 1986, pre-recorded cassettes outsold vinyl albums. The held more music, they were easy to transport and you could record music off the radio. Still, cassettes days turned out to be numbered….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiDbkaaF_k4

The CD grew rose very quickly in terms of popularity based in three basic promises:

1. They never wear out2. The sound quality is better3. They won’t scratch easily

The CD grew rose very quickly in terms of popularity based in three basic promises:

1. They never wear out2. The sound quality is better3. They won’t scratch easily

All not true:

The CD grew rose very quickly in terms of popularity based in three basic promises:

1. They never wear out2. The sound quality is better3. They won’t scratch easilyAll not true:

1. CD rot – Air causes the aluminum on the CD to oxidize (i.e. break down)

The CD grew rose very quickly in terms of popularity based in three basic promises:

1. They never wear out2. The sound quality is better3. They won’t scratch easilyAll not true:

1. CD rot – Air causes the aluminum on the CD to oxidize (i.e. break down)

2. In an effort to win produce louder music than competitors, CD’s are recorded at a higher volume. This squishes the dynamic range.

The CD grew very quickly in terms of popularity based in three basic promises:

1. They never wear out2. The sound quality is better3. They won’t scratch easily

All not true:

1. CD rot – Air causes the aluminum on the CD to oxidize (i.e. break down)

2. In an effort to produce louder music than competitors, CD’s are recorded at a higher volume. This squishes the dynamic range.

3. While less fragile than albums, CD’s still scratch and can ruin an entire disc.

Back in 1977, German scientist Karlheinz Brandenberg began to tackle the problem of compressing music for faster high-speed transfers over a phone line.

MP3 encoding software was then released as shareware, and when the Internet caught on with the general public, use of MP3 files exploded. Karl made ‘0’ dollars on this invention

The first song to be successfully encoded into an MP3: "Tom's Diner“ (1987) by Suzanne Vega. Why: Because of its dynamic range: delicate vocals mated to big beats

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-26hsZqwveA

What’s Next???