Music Technology History Markham Woods Middle School Mr. White

History of Musical Instruments Flute - woodwind (similar to recorder technology) originally made of wood » Engineering: tone hole placement, diameter of bore now made from sterling silver » Engineering: keys and lever mechanism Trumpet - brass Acquired valves in 1814 (Heinrich Stolzel) » Engineering: diameter of bore, placement of valves, mixture of metal alloy Violin – string – bow frame (stick) » Engineering: wood, fiberglass, carbon fiber – bow hair » Engineering: horse hair, nylon (synthetic)

History of Musical Instruments Drum – percussion wood shell hoop material » Engineering: steel, aluminum, metal alloy head material » Engineering: animal skin, plastic, Kevlar/plastic – Kevlar is a fiber invented by Strphanie Kwolek for DuPont Chemicals in It is also used in bicycle tires, racing sails and bulletproof vests. Piano – (player piano) – wood and cast iron body – Steel and copper strings

History of Musical Instruments Electric Instrument – an instrument that requires amplification to hear the sound best – Electric Guitar – designed by George Beauchamp in 1931, National Guitar Corporation – wood or plastic body – Steel strings – Pickups – translate the string vibration into an electric signal » Engineering: magnetic pickup, piezo pickup – Fender-Rhodes Piano – designed by Harold Rhodes and Leo Fender in 1959 – fiberglass body – steel tines » Engineering: Small metal rods or wires called tines of different lengths were struck with a hammer similar to a regular piano causing vibration. Magnetic pickups, like on an electric guitar were used to translate the vibration into an electrical signal

History of Musical Instruments Electronic Instrument – sounds electronically created through electronic circuitry including synthesizers and computers – Moog Synthesizer – designed by Dr. Robert Moog in 1963 A keyboard input was used to play the notes Various knobs, sliders, switches and patch chords were used to change the sound waves.

History of Recording Phonograph – Invented by Thomas Edison 1877 discovers recording by running tinfoil under a telegraph stylus The first recording was “Mary Had A Little Lamb” onto a tinfoil cylinder turned by a hand crank 1880’s Volta Laboratory (AG Bell) used a wax coated cardboard cylinder 1887 Edison used a battery operated motor which gave it a steady sound

History of Recording Record – ‘recorded disc’ – Invented by Emile Berliner in 1888 Flat and easier to store than cylinders Easier ‘mass production’ » Engineering: The master recording was made on a 7” wax coated zinc disc. After the recording was made, the disc was dipped in acid which etched the zinc disc creating a negative impression. The master was then used to produce duplicates in vulcanized rubber.

History of Recording Recording Tape (magnetic ferric oxide) – Invented by Fritz Pfleumer 1928 A thin strip of ‘tape’ material coated in iron particles Originally the tape was paper but later plastic Later used for video and computer data » Engineering: To record, the tape runs over a metal head which generates an electrical signal that causes the iron particles on the tape to be rearranged. For playback, the tape head picks up the arranged particles and recodes them into an electrical signal to be sent to an amplifier and then speakers

History of Recording Optical Disc / Laser Disc (DiscoVision, CD, DVD) – Invented by David Gregg & James Russell in 1958 Laser Disc first available December 1978 CD first available 1982 A joint collaboration between Sony and Philips » Engineering: Made of polycarbonate plastic with an applied coat of extremely thin aluminum (sometimes gold or other metals) In large scale production, CD’s are printed using a metal die and a coat of lacquer to seal the aluminum. In home recording the metal is already sealed and data is etched by a laser. The encoding of either method causes small indentations in the thin coat of metal called ‘pits’.

History of Recording Digital Audio – PCM developed in 1937 by Alec Reeves for voice communication PCM used in all digital audio and video » Engineering: takes samples of audio or video and creates a digital image of the sample – MP3 developed in 1994 Collaboration of Karlheinz Brandenburg, Leon van de Kerkhof, Gerhard Stoll, Leonardo Chiariglione, Yves-François Dehery,, James D. Johnston Uses heavy compression to reduce the file size » Engineering: Compression reduces data bits

History of Music Amplification Microphone – Converts sound into an electrical audio signal AG Bell used a ‘microphone’ in 1876 with the invention of the telephone but the sound quality was very poor Hughes ‘Carbon’ microphone had far better quality » Engineering: The carbon microphone used loosely packed carbon granules. Varying pressure exerted on the granules by the diaphragm receiving the sound waves caused electrical resistance and a very accurate reproduction of the sound.

History of Music Amplification Microphone (continued) Cardioid Microphone – Most common unidirectional microphone mostly used for voice – Captures sound from close range, best for on stage live » Engineering: Creates an electromagnetic signal from the diaphragm moving in response to vibration Condenser Microphone (powered) – invented at Bell Labs in 1916 by E. C. Wente – Captures sound from low volume or distant sources – Best for clarity and quality, the choice of recording studios » Engineering: A signal is created when a constant electric current is changed by the vibration of the diaphragm

History of Music Amplification Amplifier – Invented by Lee De Forest in 1909 Takes very low level audio signals and makes them louder – Originally, vacuum tubes (triode) were used as the electronics, modern amps use transistors » Engineering: Receives an electric signal from a microphone, electric (electric guitar) or electronic instrument and through electronic processing, makes the signal louder – Pre-amp The first stage of an amplifier that takes the raw signal to a level the main amplifier can process.

History of Music Amplification Speaker (Loudspeaker) – Invented by Johann Philipp Reis in 1861 Tones were clear but speech was muffled until a few revisions later » Engineering: Receives an electric signal from an amplifier which drives the electromagnet and moves the cone producing vibrations in the air – Passive Speaker Requires an external amplifier – Active Speaker Has a built-in amplifier