The Earliest Recording of Music on Record
Sometimes when we realize how old a song is that reminds us of a certain time period or moment in our lives, we think, "What?! The song is THAT old? It was THAT many years ago that I went on that vacation? I thought that vacation JUST happened."
Or, we might think, "What?! It was THAT many years ago that I loved this song as a teenager?! THAT many years have flown by?! The song doesn't even sound THAT old to me. Does it sound old? Maybe it does! Yes, now that I listen a bit more it sounds very dated. Nobody uses a reverb like that anymore, and that keyboard is a dead giveaway. Wait a second. Am I as outdated as that song sounds?"
Music can remind us of the joy of our lives, and it can remind us of how old we are getting.
However, I found a solution to help remind us that the musical recordings of our lives aren't even that old at all. In fact, when it comes to the musical recordings we all grew up with, we're all just babies.
The recordings in this video are from 1888. The first part is known to be the first recording of music that was well preserved over time (I believe there might be a few earlier recordings of music, although the audio is not as well preserved as this).
Following the music, you will hear the voice of Sir Arthur Sullivan, the British composer. He recorded his voice to send to Thomas Edison, who believed that recordings could be used as an audio version of a handwritten letter. Sir Arthur Sullivan spoke these words after listening to musical recordings at a Phonograph Party:
"Dear Mr. Edison,
If my friend Edmund Yates has been a little incoherent it is in consequence of the excellent dinner and good wines that he has drunk. Therefore I think you will excuse him. He has his lucid intervals. For myself, I can only say that I am astonished and somewhat terrified at the result of this evening's experiments: astonished at the wonderful power you have developed, and terrified at the thought that so much hideous and bad music may be put on record for ever. But all the same I think it is the most wonderful thing that I have ever experienced, and I congratulate you with all my heart on this wonderful discovery. - Arthur Sullivan." Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lv7i-gkSWn0
Isn't it interesting how, even at the very first possibility in all of history of recording music, Sir Arther Sullivan was terrified at the thought of hideous and bad music being put on record forever? Although he was amazed at this new invention, he also immediately pondered what this meant for the future of music. What would he think of some of the overproduced music of today? The lyrics? The voices? The use of autotune?
Back to what I was saying about how music can sometimes make us feel old. Where were we when the song in this video was recorded in 1888? That's right, we weren't even born yet! Now when you hear a song from your teen years or a song that reminds you of a vacation or special summer, you won't have to think to yourself, "That song was recorded so long ago! That makes me feel soooo old!"
Actually, that song is very new in comparison to the recording that you heard just now. See?
The Macarena is a brand new song.
People sometimes compare old U2 and new U2 music. What's that all about? It's all new compared to this 1888 recording.
Disco was just recently recorded.
The Beatles are still just as popular as ever, so clearly their music wasn't released long ago.
Woodstock just happened.
On the great timeline of the world and the great timeline of music, we're all just babies, man.
Thank you Thomas Edison for the phonograph. You were a righteous dude. Without all these recordings, where would music be today?
Thank you to d60944 for posting this on YouTube and giving us the opportunity to enjoy music history. d60944 has a great music archive of 19th century pianists.
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