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1 BCE
Introduction
Before recording and audio systems, songs were hand written and kept in books. This was started by the Catholic Church so that its members can worship properly. Other churches and religious groups followed suit, writing hymn books for the participants. Later on, individuals referred to as "song catchers" decided to begin recording music by pen and paper, traveling down through the south to record slave songs, work songs, ballads, hymns, and even some Native American chants. -
1 CE
Introduction
Over time, as technology has developed, our ability to create and record music has also evolved. Starting with the wax cylinder gramophone, music came out very grainy and sometimes unintelligible. The mechanics of sound were a very delicate art back during this time, as the needle and wax cylinder were very sensitive to louder vibrations that would make the needle jump off the wax and ruin the music. -
2
Introduction
This impacted how songs were recorded back in the 19th century, limiting musicians to using only certain instruments during recording sessions. Because of this, a lot of the archived Native American songs are inaccurately represented, featuring only a vocal chant rather than the proper instrumentation involved. The Native American depicted above (1) recorded his first cylinder with a drum. Once it was played back, they had discovered that they needed to record without the percussive instrument. -
3
Introduction
Music now has a tangible medium, which struck up a market where people could buy, sell, and record music. With the uproar of this market, we begin to see some recording studios open up with their respective entrepreneurial owners scouting the streets for individuals with potential. With music as a new medium to profit from, a lot of injured, sick, or otherwise disabled people found their career taking a turn from the railroads to the arts. -
4
Introduction
Music gave disadvantaged individuals an opportunity to make a living and provide for their families. Back in this era, if you were a man, you were expected to work in the blue collar industry. But some men, like Jimmie Rodgers, got sick and couldn't work. Jimmie Rodgers was a famous country singer who had caught TB and had to quit his job on the railroad. Once his music was recorded and put on the radio, the entire country fell in love and was devastated at his early passing. -
5
Introduction
As technology advanced, we were able to include a wider variety of instrumentation as well as vocal tone. With the introduction of sound amplification, vocalists no longer concerned themselves with projecting their voices to fill a room. During this time, vocalists were now able to create a more intimate environment with their audiences with their new ability to whisper into their listeners' ears. -
6
Introduction
Fast forward to today’s sound and recording systems, we are able to record, refine, and even add to music recordings. This has allowed artists to experiment with new mediums, styles, instrumentation, and software editing to enhance the listening experience as well as create new genres of music, pushing societal boundaries and creating new ideas that contribute to the ever-growing music industry. -
7
Introduction
This timeline will walk you through three different eras that yielded to a variety of recording and audio technologies, how they work, and what they look like. Watch as each piece of technology becomes a better version of itself, how electricity impacted the machinery, and then how software advancements made it possible to digitalize sound! -
Cylinder Phonograph
This invention allowed people to both record and play back the recording on the same device. A blank wax cylinder was used to record the sounds channeled through a bell, which vibrated a very sensitive needle and created grooves in the wax. To play the sounds, the needle was simply reset and the grooved would vibrate the needle, which produced the sounds that were then channeled through the bell. This mechanism was hand-cranked both for recording and for replay. -
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Acoustic Recording Era
Using needles and grooves to produce sound, the production of loud bursts of sound was impossible because it would make the sensitive needle leap off the cylinder or disc during recording, completely ruining the recording. Because of this, Louis Armstrong was made to play his trumpet in a separate room during recording sessions because he played so loud, he made the needle jump. -
Gramophone
This functions very similarly to the cylinder phonograph, using a needle and grooves to produce sound through a bell. The main difference between these two is that the gramophone works with flat disks made of vinyl, whereas phonographs used wax cylinders. -
Wire Recording
This was the very first piece of electronic equipment that recorded music: sounds from a microphone create an electrical signal that alters the magnetization of a very thin stainless steel wire. This is then able to play back the sounds originally recorded on it through the magnetic properties of the wire. -
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Electrical Recording Era
These were the very first electronic recording devices, using an electric signal to manipulate the magnetic properties of a wire or tape. -
Reel-to-Reel Tape
This works very similarly to the wire recording mechanism, but instead of using steel wire, a magnetic tape was used as the recording medium. The tape allowed for faster recording speeds, alterations of sounds, and multiple parallel tracks. -
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Magnetic Recording Era
This was a time when producers began experimenting with the niche sounds only a magnetic tape can produce. They were able to distort voices, speed up and slow down the recording, reverse it, and play sections on loops. This unique type of music was referred to as "Tape Music." -
Stereo Vinyl Record
This takes more after the gramophone, playing with the idea of grooves and a needle. With the stereo record, the grooves are V-shaped, allowing for two signals to be played at the same time: one for the left, and one for the right. The needle itself converts vibrations into electrical signals that can be played through more advanced sound systems. -
Cassette Tape
This is an expanded idea of the wire recording: a very thin wire is magnetized and sends electrical signals to a sound system. Cassette tapes are significantly smaller than the original recording wire, allowing for easier storage and better mobility. -
4-Track Tape
This is an advancement of tape recording: magnetic tape is run through an electromagnet that changes the magnetic properties of the tape. The main difference is that musicians are now able to layer up to four different tracks on the same tape, allowing for more advanced audio production. -
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Digital Recording Era
This spans all the way to our present day, where technology has allowed us to advance in how we record, store, edit, and play music. -
Laserdiscs and CDs
As technology and coding advances, we are now able to use lasers to read indentations and bumps (pits and lands) and convert those signals into music. This is considered a form of "optical data storage," using light instead of magnets. -
MP3 Player
A large leap in technology allows data to be stored in digital audio files. MP3 players are able to use new software to copy and manage audio files while a microprocessor is used to manipulate the device itself. A DSP (Digital Signal Processor) is used to decompress and process the files, yielding to optimal sound production.