Recording Technology-
In 1877 Thomas Edison an American inventor made the first voice recording, the device that he invented became know as the Phonograph.The phonograph was very expensive and only rich could afford the phonograph.
In 1885 the Graphophone was developed by Chichester Bell and Charles Tainter. Both the phonograph and the graphophone employed the same recording technique but the graphophone used wax coated cylinders.
1887 Emile Berliner develops the Gramophone which used flat discs which could be easily reproduced and by 1910 the Gramophone was in widespread use.The gramophone is the oldest form of music recording,also it used to be a form of analog recording.Back in those days when you didn’t have any options the gramophone was the only thing that people used to like and all artists wanted the gramophone to record their music.
1917 saw the first jazz record released, which sold 1 million records and this increased the popularity of the Gramophone.The only downside of the gramophone is that there were a few limitations to early recordings in the gramophone.
As a result of the inventions of the Phonograph and these changed the music industry because when the Phonograph was invented people learned to copy songs by listening to a record over and over again.The Phonograph didn’t just help artists make music, it also affected movies. Because music could be recorded, movies began to have recorded sound to them and music.
By 1925 there was a massive improvement on the microphones and engineers were finding a way to record using electricity. Microphones had an increased frequency range which helped in improving the sound quality. It also led to the development of the “Crooning” singing style.
In the 1930 during the great depression unemployment was so high and people across the nation is so poor, people turned to the radio because it was a cheaper source of music entertainment. The sound quality of the radio was superior to records.
Until the late 1940’s recording could not be edited,however that changed when the recording industry began using magnetic-coated sound recording tape. Multitrack technology was first developed in the late 1940s after the introduction of magnetic tape as a means of recording.The 4-track recorder became common by the 1960s.
By 1954 Ampex had produced the first eight-track tape machine at Paul’s request, but eight-track machines remained rare within the industry until the late 1960s which resulted in the first sel-sync machine,an 8 track machine which used an 1 inch tape and it became known as the “octopus”.
Les Paul contributions to the music industry like tape delay, phasing effects, Multi-track recording and sound on sound,all of the technology are still in use today and that have helped evolve music and recording technology over the past half century.However his Sound on Sound was the most revolutionary because Never before had recording allowed or had been used for making multiple recorded tracks that could be played in tandem, which created a whole new sonic world for musicians and engineers to explore.
Instrument Technology-
Technological development has had a major effect on how music sounds.From the invention of new instruments to developments in sound recording, different aspects of technology have had a major effect upon what musicians do, what music sounds like and the way in which we as listeners experience music. They continue to do so today.
Early musical instruments may have been used for ritual, such as a trumpet to signal success on the hunt, or a drum in a religious ceremony. Cultures eventually developed composition and performance of melodies for entertainment. Musical instruments evolved in step with changing applications.the oldest object that some scholars refer to as a musical instrument, a simple flute, dates back as far as 67,000 years.The first lyres in Ancient Greece were made of tortoise shells. They had two fixed upright arms and a cross bar. There were tuning pegs often made of bone, ivory, wood or even bronze.
During the Medieval Times There were two main types of music – secular and religious. Secular music was made up of folk songs and ballads, many of which were sung by wandering musicians called troubadours.Religious music was performed without instrument accompaniment. It was sung or chanted by monks or called Gregorian Chant. During the In the 11th and 12 centuries Troubadours, Trouveres and Minstrels were the poets and musicians who influenced Medieval Music.
The evolution of the guitar has evolved from a variety of cultures and years of experimentation to enhance the sound of the guitar. The first instruments that led to todays modern guitar were the Lute, Rickenbacker, Lyer and the Kithara etc.
Music & Society The Functions Of Music Part 1
Music and Religion-
Folk-Folk music is any style of music, which represents a community and can be sung or played by people who may or may not be, trained musicians, using the instruments available to them. Folk is passed down by through families and other social groups.
Sea Shanties- The purpose of the sea shanty was that it could be served as a practical purpose but also as a social purpose because everyone joined in and it would lighten the mood on board the ship and
Religious Music – The Medieval Period was between 500-1450 AD and in that time it was heavy church influence so this would lead to the church Putting in rules in music.Many of the Musicians were trained in the church and also the church had a lot of money so they could buy items like paper which was very expensive in the medieval period.However buying paper meant that music could be written down.
The medieval Church has rules on what was acceptable in chanting prayers.The chanting of this time period was called Plainchant but it is sometimes referred to as Gregorian Chant. Gregorian Chant was Monophonic so what this means is that it had 1 melody but no harmony. The monks would sing the prayer in unison. Medieval musicians called Minstrels were similar to bards as they were the hired to to play music to the royal monarchs and entertain them as well. Bards profession was to make poems, tell stories and to compose and perform music. When bards were rewarded after they had entertained the royal monarchs they would be given gold coins as payment.
Classical Music- Classical Period was between 1750-1820.During this period a lot of historical events that we know of today happened like for example in:
1756-1763- Seven Year’s War
1776-American Declaration of Independence
1789- French Revolution begins
The Classical Music was the was the foundation on how modern music sounds today: the Classical music Era first produced the chorus and at the time the chorus was a short melody which was repetitive and it was memorable.The best known composers from the Classical period are Mozart, Beethoven and Haydn. One of the most famous melodies was the first four notes of Beethoven’s 5th symphony.
Music Hall-Music hall was one of the most popular forms of affordable entertainment in the Victorian period.In the early music halls, songs were central to the performance. Performers would sing songs whilst the audience ate but sometimes the audience would join in. The music hall became so popular that it would be put on two or three times a week.
Radio- BBC Radio started in 1927.The Radio was significant when the second world war started because the reporter Edward R. Murrow would report on the battle of britain and particularly the bombing raids the german airforce luftwaffe on London. As the radio was cheap almost everyone had one in there homes and so they would listen what happened in the morning during the war as the bbc was a reliable source of information.
Film-In 1927 the film “The Jazz Singer” was significant because it was the first film to have sound and this changed how film in music is today. The main function of music in film is for adding atmosphere or emotion. One of the strongest function of music in films is atmosphere.This can set the tone of the movie.
War- Music’s role in the war was that both sides began to practice the art of propaganda in an attempt to motivate their people or demoralise the enemies.Music genres like Jazz, swing and the big band sound became a part of the culture in both hemispheres.widely known as “the Forces’ Sweetheart” Vera Lynn is a singer and songwriter and her songs were very popular during WW2. The likes of Vera Lynn,Max Miller, Gracie Fields kept up the spirits of the public when times were difficult, such as in the Blitz.
Rock N Roll- Rock ‘n’ Roll has been influenced by many different types of music and it also has paved the way for originality, self expression and free thought.Rock ‘n’ roll has many different forms from heavy metal to classic rock, punk, alternative, and grunge. Rock ‘n’ roll music has influenced many different areas of pop culture but most notably in the 1950s and 1960s.
Politics
The ‘Department for Culture, Media and Sport’ is a government department led by British MP John Whittingdale. This department is responsible for all policies regarding culture, TV, and performing arts.The department of education pushes harder for music to be in everyday education.Therefore this has allowed more students and also adults to pursue a career in music.However there is a down side to this because this adds more pressure in the music industry but on the plus side is that they get to have a chance to achieve there dream. One of the pros of music being incorporated into everyday education at a young age instead of being taught when you’re an adult is that there is room for more information to take in. In 2012 Musical Education Hubs were established in response to the government’s 2011 National Plan For Music Education.Music hubs provide opportunities and access in music education for children and young people.
The Music manifesto was issued by UK Music.UK Music promotes the interests of record labels,songwriters,musicians, managers, publishers and producers.On the 1st of October 2012 The Live Music Act came into effect in which allows you play your music publicly. One way how you can get a license is that you can got your local council. The impacts of the Live Music Act effects clubs, live venues and outdoor festivals. Patronage in the Music industry is referred to the private financial support of musicians controlled by a select wealthy few. In the past wealthy people like the monarch, the pope or even the church would do this. under patronage you would do what the patrons what they exactly wanted musically. During the middle ages music was dominated by the church and also most compositions was for sacred use. These early compositions influenced western musical development.During the renaissance the church still had control however what it didn’t have was that it had less influence over society which led to greater freedom to composers.
Politics and music are in a continuous loop. A couple of examples is:
The Reformation of the Church-This was an important political event because music moved away from complex polyphony to unison melodies.
Slavery- During the period of slavery black people who worked on the cotton fields would sings songs to get through the hard labour work.
Teenage Culture- Post WWII in the 1950’s teenagers at the time had no appeal to the music that was being played until “Teenage Culture” came along and was an instant hit with the teenagers
Music in Society: Business
When a business owns raw material, that material is called a commodity. So for instance when a musician releases music it could be called a commodity. From the beginning when music started People called bards and were usually solo musicians which played the lute.When bards were first introduced The profession was to make poems,and perform music for the wealthy. when the Bards had finished a days work they would get paid very little by the nobles, however the nobles would give the bards accommodation.The impact of the nobles and royals putting funds towards the bards the music industry as we know of wouldn’t be the same.
Nowadays You don’t hear about religious music being written anymore and the pop music gets all the attention.Over time record labels are being shut down and the amount of record labels has dropped significantly,The reason being is that either the record labels have merged with other labels or rebranded. There are now only 3 major labels left Universal Music Group, Sony Music and Warner Music. Music has become more about making money and profit rather than artistic credibility.
Music publishing began in the 15th century when sheet music was being printed using the new mechanical printing presses.Formats such as vinyl,Cd and mp3 are examples of mechanical sales in the modern world. all of these formats are so common that now almost every shop will have CD’s and some of the other formats as well. There has been so many musical formats and when a new music format comes along the older formats see to die out, The granddaddy of them all, vinyl records have been around for decades, and they’re making a comeback of late. A new 24 hour TV channel was added to TV sets in 1982; This was MTV. MTV stood and still stands for Music Television and was the channel that aired the first ever music videos to be produced. The very first music video aired on MTV was “Video Killed the Radio Star”. the impact of this was astronomical.Now when you hear a song it will have a music video.
The start of music being purchased was around the 15th century. Sheet music was most1y chant music because the church was still dominant at this time period.The impact of this is that people still buy sheet music today.
In conclusion there would simply be no music without the business because throughout history monarchs,churches and also wealthy people have funded musicians live bards and bands but also a bit of assurance as well. The money and support of other groups have nourished and shaped the way music grew and drastically changed the profitability of it also.
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