SILS - Spring 2020 HI307 MEDIA HISTORY: Four Modern Revolutions Graham Law Sound & Sight (1): Phonograph Structure of today’s presentation I Phonograph Technology – Precedents & terminology – Early choices – Phonograph timeline – After the phonograph II Phonograph Sociology – Phonograph functions – Production/Consumption models – Economic indicators – Subculture: Phonograph & Fashion I. Phonograph Technology Precedents & Terminology Precedents Terminology – photography – electric telegraphy – “registering sound” (Ozanne) – telephony – “talking-machine” (Edison) – wireless telegraphy – musical scores – “phonograph” (US/Edison) – music boxes – sound – writing (Gk) – phonautography (registering sound visually) – “gramophone” (UK) – phonography (phonetic short- – character – sound (Gk) hand) Nadar (Fr. Photographer) predicted in 1860s: “an acoustic daguerreotype which faithfully …reproduces all the sounds subjected to it” “a box in which melodies can be caught & fixed, as the camera obscura does with images” Edison: “I was experimenting on an automatic method of recording telegraph messages on a disk of paper laid on a revolving platen … From my experiments on the telephone I knew of the power of a diaphragm to take up sound vibrations …” F.D. Dyer & T.C. Martin, Edison: His Life and Invention (1910) I pp. 206-8 Early technical options Recording/playback media Recording/playback device – cylinder vs. disk – mechanical vs. electrical • fidelity power (motor) • reproducibility – horn vs. speaker • storage – metal needle vs. crystal stylus – tinfoil (embossing) vs. wax (engraving) – vertical (up-and-down) vs. lateral (side-to-side) tracking Rough Phonograph Timeline Technical Institutional – double-sided disks (1910s) – Edison, Berliner, Bell, etc (1880s) – radiograms (1930s) – Columbia, Victor, HMV (1890s-) – shellac >> vinyl (1940s) – song-charts (US Phonoscope, 1896) – auto-players (1940s) – magazines (UK Gramophone 1923) – long-playing records [lps] (1950s) – radio airing (1920s) – mono >> hifi/stereo (1950s) – radio “disk jockeys” & coin “juke – elaborate sleeve artwork (1960s) boxes” (1930s) – colored discs (1970s) – TV chart shows (1950s) Analog After the Phonograph – early strip and wire recorders Digital (1970s-) (1890s-) – reel-to-reel magnetic tape – DAT (1930s-) – CD (& MD) – cassette tape (1960s-) – streaming (mp3 etc) – computer storage (HD etc) – portability • portable radio-cassette players – portable digital audi devices • car stereos • walkman II. Phonograph Sociology Phonographic Functions Edison’s 10 practical applications – as dictation machine – to create auditory books for the blind etc. Writing/Reading Sound – to record lessons e.g. in elocution – record (production) – for recording musical performances – playback (reception) – for creating auditory family records – in musical boxes and toys Sound Content – in speaking clocks – speech – for auditory advertising – music – for preserving celebrity speeches – other (natural, mechanical, …) – as answer-phone machine Social Function “The Phonograph and its Future” – informational North American Review – educational #126 (May-June 1878), pp. 527-36 – aesthetic (art/entertainment) User models: Consumption-oriented Creation-oriented – playback focus – recording focus – user passive – user active – like photographs – like books – cf. sheet music & piano – media (records etc.) as – bourgeois society commodities – pub singalong – serial issue – still consumption of – major device updates hardware, blank media, etc – added intellectual property rights See: Michael Chanan, Repeated Takes (1995) Economic Indicators: Booms and slumps in phonograph / record sales, e.g. Edison Co. Quantity of Disc Phonographs and Disc Records Sold Radio-Phonograph Division Accounting Department Report to W. H. Meadowcroft, April 9, 1929) Disc Phonographs Disc Records Domestic Export Domestic Export Total to Dec. 31st, 1915 95,889 ...... 3,446,070 ...... Jan. 1, 1916 to Feb. 28. 1917 73, 332 252 2,621,113 16,590 Mar. 1, 1917 to Feb. 28, 1918 77,304 1,707 3,351,098 42,086 Mar. 1, 1918 to Feb. 28, 1919 68, 749 791 3,260,534 65,478 Mar. 1, 1919 to Feb. 29, 1920 121,539 2,135 7,163,028 131,612 Mar. 1, 1920 to Feb. 28, 1921 140,149 1,758 7,596,856 124,224 Mar. 1, 1921 to Feb. 28, 1922 32,963 1,273 4,595,030 144,826 Mar. 1, 1922 ro Feb. 28, 1923 59,606 2706 3,626,481 157,739 Mar. 1, 1923 to Feb. 29, 1924 65,925 4,226 3,877,450 145,028 Mar. 1, 1924 to Feb. 28, 1925 31,900 4,211 2,732,163 200,006 Mar. 1, 1925 to Dec. 31, 1925 13,977 4,718 1,586,336 193,105 Jan. 1, 1926 to Dec. 31, 1926 9,906 4,496 1,422,599 212,643 Jan. 1, 1927 to Dec. 31, 1927 7,311 3,085 685,247 122,515 Jan. 1, 1928 to Dec. 31, 1928 12,917 2,403 405,797 88,733 Source: Edison National Historic Site <http://www.nps.gov/edis/home.htm> Subculture: Phonograph, Dance & Fashion Pre-war, e.g. – ragtime (e.g. Scott Joplin) Inter-war, e.g. – tango, big bands, & jazz Post-war. e.g. – 1950s: rock and roll – 1960s: mods & rockers – 1970s: glam rock & punk rock See: Dick Hebdige, Subculture: The Meaning of Style (1979) Discussion Session Over to You Questions & Comments .