The Phonograph
It all started in 1877
Thomas Edison was
working on the
invention of the
telegraph and
telephone
Discovered that the
telephone message
could be recorded
Gave
a sketch of the
machine to his mechanic,
who built it in 30 hours
It all started in 1877
Had a little lamb”
–Thomas Edison
How did it work?
–Energy from sound waves
pressed into a foil or wax
coated cylinder
“Mary
How did the phonograph work???
Then in 1887
flat gramophone disc
(or phonograph disc) was
invented by Emile Berliner
–More durable, cheaper,
easier to use
The
1890:
Machines in public
places called nickelodeons
played the discs for a nickel
–Modern day jukebox
By 1900:
Columbia
Records & Victor
Talking Machine Company
were the main companies
1902: 12” disc – the “78
rpm” was invented
–Revolutions per minute
Each
disc held 4 minutes of
music
1904: Double sided 78 discs
Impact
Used
for at least 40 years
until the 33 rpm 45 rpm discs
were put into use
Early phonographs
Used
at beginning to
preserve voices, not music
–Presidential speeches, for
instance
1st
Musical recording:
–Enrico Caruso: recorded
opera arias in London
(1902)
Effects – Good & Bad
If
you had a “Victrola”, you
were considered to be
“moving on up” in the world
However:
–Initial public reaction was
dislike: technological
advancement was
distracting young people
–Has this happened before?
Popularity
1904:
1 of every 22 houses
had a phonograph
1909: 26 million
discs/cylinders were produced
Discussion…
Do
you get the same
musical “effect” of listening
to a live vs recorded piece
of music?
Questions
You
have an hour (by
yourself):
–Same amount of $
Listen to a CD of music
Go to a concert
You
have an hour (with
friends):
–Same amount of $
Listen to a CD of music
Go to a concert
Is the answer to both
different? Why? What
changes?
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