The first known recording of a digital computer playing music, recorded by the BBC in 1951. The music played on a Ferantti Mark 1, one of the first commercial general-use computers, and was entered via punchtape and played on a speaker usually used for making clicks and tones to indicate program progress.
posted on Jun 18, 2008 - View this thread

Tourists black out reflective retinas in snapshots before printing them, and millions of people refer to strangers they’ve never spoken to as friends, because they’ve connected through a social-networking platform. [...] It should come as no surprise, then, that singers sometimes choose to correct recorded flaws in pitch with modern software, like Antares’s Auto-Tune.

Sasha Frere-Jones on auto-tuning, in The New Yorker.
posted on Jun 10, 2008 - View this thread

Illustrated Histories of Various Recording Technologies
posted on Apr 22, 2008 - View this thread

An Artist's view from her tent. Listen to the view. Yes, listen. Katie Paterson via mobile phone and underwater mike at a glacier lake in Iceland, captures underwater sounds of melting and cracking Jökulsárlón Glacier. Hear it piddling away. Call to listen what the seals are talking about, if they're nearby.
posted on Apr 2, 2008 - View this thread

Researchers Play Tune Recorded Before Edison
The Phonoautograph
The history of the Phonoautograph. A technology in which you can still buy stock.
posted on Mar 27, 2008 - View this thread

The Sound Of Clothes features the precise sound of fashion materials such as feathers, sequins, glass crystals and beads, nylon, taffeta, leather, velvet, jacquard, zips and metallic chains, recorded in an anechoic chamber. Videos linked from the page might be NSFW.
posted on Mar 12, 2008 - View this thread

The Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section was comprised of four session musicians operating out of the tiny northern Alabama town of town Muscle Shoals. Just four unassuming crackers who happened to have provided the funky underpinning for a huge number of hit songs by, among others, Aretha Franklin, Wilson Pickett, Paul Simon, Joe Cocker, The Staple Singers , Jimmy Cliff and many, many others. Hey, they were the house band to the greats. Big respect to the men from 3614 Jackson Highway! [note: see hoverovers for link descriptions]
posted on Feb 24, 2008 - View this thread

Ron Murphy cut records, but not just any records. Responsible for cutting the actual vinyl master plates of much of the now revered Detroit Techno including Jeff Mills, Carl Craig, Underground Resistance's seminal Knights of the Jaguar, and much more - he demonstrated impeccable craftsmanship and skill in both mastering records for sound and aesthetics at company known as Sound Enterprises source link AKA National Sound Corporation. Schooled in Motown, dubplates and jukeboxes, he is the bespoke-crafted, analog link between the digital future and analog past that is the roots of Techno music and modern techno DJ culture.
posted on Feb 13, 2008 - View this thread

... a small, heavy package wrapped in brown paper arrived in the mail at the Woody Guthrie Archives in New York City. Inside was a mess of wires. It wasn't a bomb - it turned out to be the only live recording of Woody Guthrie known to exist. The wire was fragile, bent, stretched and twisted. Jamie Howarth applied some algorithms he had developed to restore old recordings, and the result has been nominated for a Grammy.
posted on Feb 8, 2008 - View this thread

Holophonic sound is an audio recording technique which operates on a principle similar to Holography. The result has been reported to be realistic and life-like three dimensional sounding audio recordings.
posted on Dec 13, 2007 - View this thread

Want to be a recording star? The Great World of Sound is looking for new talent!
posted on Nov 18, 2007 - View this thread

Led Zeppelin's The Song Remains The Same motion picture soundtrack, reverse engineered.
posted on Nov 17, 2007 - View this thread

HOMOPHONI
posted on Oct 7, 2007 - View this thread

Any experienced studio engineer or producer knows that the presence of visitors in the studio can dramatically affect the performance of singers and musicians. Using advanced proprietary computer modelling, the Virtual Studio Visitor plug-in convincingly emulates the effect of various studio visitors on a performance, without the need for the visitors to actually be present. Also from the visionaries at Sonic Finger: the Dead Quietenator provides you with the highest quality pure digital silence, including several highly sought-after vintage silences previously unattainable.
posted on Oct 1, 2007 - View this thread

Philip Kives, the "K" in K-Tel records, built his pioneering record label by cramming up to 24 songs on low-fi compilation LP’s (later cassettes, 8-tracks, and CDs) and aggressively marketing them with TV ads. What's your favorite K-Tel album?
posted on Mar 26, 2007 - View this thread

The Indie Band Survival Guide: A fantastic, free, 101 pages collection of useful information for musicians - covers topics such as recording, copyright, major label contracts, commercial radio, promoting your music, band websites, distribution, filesharing and live shows.
posted on Feb 25, 2007 - View this thread

The Pandora Podcast Series: "The idea behind them is to provide some interesting, and hopefully entertaining segments on various aspects of music theory. Kind of like a peek under the hood of music composition and performance using lots of musical examples." So far they've covered vocal harmony, drumming, electric guitar effects, recording vocals and elements of salsa. Schedule for rest of 2007.
posted on Feb 15, 2007 - View this thread

When I was a kid, my dad, who grew up in London, during the Blitz, used to play this old record: a song called "The Laughing Policeman." It always put a smile on my face. According to Wikipedia, it was written in 1922 by Charles Jolly, who wrote "numerous other laughing songs (The Laughing Major, Curate, Steeplechaser, Typist, Lover, etc)." If you want to hear the happiest policeman ever, here's the mp3. The song has inspired cartoonists, mystery novelists (great series, by the way!), filmmakers, a more-recent recording (mp3), and, inevitably, some scary people on youtube. Speaking of youtube, this is how I remember the song.
posted on Feb 11, 2007 - View this thread

"In the monitor booth the sound technician listens to the rehearsal through a loudspeaker, and in cooperation with maestro Ellington, brings the music to its highest sound perfection before transmitting it through the electrical circuits to the recording machine!" Record Making With Duke Ellington (1937). [YouTube]
posted on Nov 27, 2006 - View this thread

For the would-be recording buffs: understanding compression. A three-part series which explains the workings and uses of compressors, limiters, expanders, and gates. Plus some thoughts on the modern epidemic of overcompression from the listener's perspective.
posted on May 27, 2006 - View this thread

Tweak's Guide to Home Recording. A comprehensive home recording guide that will take you all the way from buying an audio interface to choosing a mic preamp to learning the subtle arts of compression and EQing. A good refresher course even for those with recording experience. And for those more interested in composition than recording, Tweak's piece on Inspiration is insightful as well.
posted on Apr 3, 2006 - View this thread

John "Paia" Simonton died late last week. His company, PAiA is one of the grandfathers of the DIY synth scene. I have one of his modular synths half-constructed in my garage. He helped create an American buzz for electronic music and DIY music gear in the 70s, and was highly influential till his passing away.
posted on Nov 29, 2005 - View this thread

Ever just stopped and listened? Acoustic Ecology encourages us to be aware of the sound environment around us, and to take responsibility for it.

The World Forum for Acoustic Ecology, as well as publishing a beautiful journal called Soundscape, is a starting point for finding many sound resources. Listen to soundscapes from Denmark and California, and field recordings from Vietnam and Vancouver. Take an audiovisual tour of NYC or Portland, Oregon. Experience cicadas, birds, frogs and other animals. Take a soundwalk through the park. Create your own international sound journey. You can even hear sounds from underwater or from the Northern Lights in the sky. And when you're done, learn how to make your own recordings.
posted on Nov 14, 2005 - View this thread

DIY Guide to Recording. Set up a home studio. This seems to cover a lot, and not being a pro at audio recording, I found it pretty useful.
posted on Jul 18, 2005 - View this thread

Buying Rare Race Records in the South. Music That Americans Loved 100 Years Ago. The Cheney Talking Machine. Just three among dozens of amazing articles about early recording machines and American popular music at the astonishingly detailed site of Tim Gracyk, author of Popular American Recording Pioneers: 1895-1925. Scroll down for bios of forgotten stars, including Nora Bayes - who performed in the Follies of 1907, before Flo Ziegfeld's name became part of the title, George W. Johnson - "the most important African-American recording artist of the 1890s," and piano player Zez Confrey, whose sheet music for the 1921 hit "Kitten on the Keys" sold over a million copies and became "the third most-frequently recorded rag in history."
posted on May 17, 2005 - View this thread

How to Sell Your Book, CD, or DVD on Amazon [From Kevin Kelly's Cool Tools: he has a knack for asking the best questions]
posted on Feb 28, 2005 - View this thread

Tip and Shout: 2'' Tape: "But last Friday, [Jeff] Tweedy hit a snag as he prepared for a session in Wilco's Chicago studio space: Nobody could find any of the professional-grade audio tape the band is accustomed to using."
posted on Jan 13, 2005 - View this thread

Meeksville centers around Joe Meek, Britain's first independent record producer, whose DIY engineering wizardry would transform record-making during the Sixties. Five years after an international #1 hit in the Tornadoes' space-age Telstar (Windows Media or RealPlayer), he would self-destruct, in an end not without tragedy or speculation. His works--along with his trademarked name--live on.
posted on Sep 10, 2004 - View this thread

Head Back to Mono in 32k at the rineke.net records archive, where a rather consistent curator has digitized a goody chunk of his record collection. It's posted in more-or-less every iteration imaginable. Observe the linked scans (1 mb page, careful!) of the covers (also in multiple resolutions up to full-size). Note the records themselves, in sleeve or out, depending. Most especially, savor the clean, low-res mono mp3s that cry out to be played through the dashboard speakers of a 1967 Dodge Dart.

Bonus Big Beat Bonanza: The site's author is also behind the similarly detailed archive of shows by ex-WFMU dj The Hound, from 1987 through 1995, heavy on the rare regional sides beloved of certain of my pals down New Orleans way.

Last, but not least, rineke.net hosts the adventures of a platoon of Tux clones, sealing my geek admiration for the overseer of the site. There's more, of course. My propeller beanie's off to you, sir, and long may you wave, or particle, as is your choice and preference.

(Permission was sought and granted to post this, as I feard for the site's bandwidth. Have at it, Mefites!
posted on Aug 12, 2004 - View this thread

The daily adventures of mixerman are back. Mixerman has started posting a new set of diary entries about his recording sessions with an anonymous band. His original diary (discussed here) is now available in hardcover.
posted on Aug 12, 2004 - View this thread

Hello, MUDDA. "The relationship of artist to the business has most often been one of contract and servitude. We believe the way forward must be a partnership in which the artist can take a much bigger role in how their creations are sold, but also have the chance to stand at the front of the queue when payments are made instead of the traditional position of being paid long after everyone else." - Peter Gabriel
posted on Aug 11, 2004 - View this thread

Where did dynamic range go? Compact discs seem to keep getting more and more compressed in an effort to make them seem louder. Didn't the compact disc promise greater dynamic range than vinyl? Then, some record label exec comes along and makes the recording so hot we lose the dynamic range. People have been complaining about this for some time. Papers have been written about it with proposed solutions. Where will it end?
posted on Jul 21, 2004 - View this thread

"Close your eyes. See if you can distinguish the voice of the New Edison from that of the artist. Did you ever believe it was possible to recreate the human voice?" As featured on the July 16 episode of NPR's Next Big Thing, Thomas Edison's promotional tone tests have been recreated by composer Nicholas Brooke for the stage, which New York MeFites can see at the Lincoln Center Festival later this week. (More wonderful phonographic ephemera here, by the way.)
posted on Jul 19, 2004 - View this thread

Movies for Music
From the press release: "Movies for Music" (moviesformusic.org) is an online film contest with a simple aim: to give the public a clear and honest look at the music industry. As more people learn how the music business works, major label CD sales will plummet faster. The contest launches Monday.

The short film contest launched today, and first place is a ZVue handheld video player.
posted on Jun 14, 2004 - View this thread

The Apology Line was an art project by Allan Bridge. For 15 years, anonymous confessions were collected by an answering machine. Covered by This American Life, and an early Wired Magazine article, The Apology Line predated online confessionals like grouphug.us by over 20 years.

The resulting messages were compiled into tapes. The long out-of-print cassette The Apology Line: Uncut Gems From Year Zero (1980-1981) is available in mp3 form: Side A. Side B. Fascinating, funny, and disturbing, all at once. [via Fluxblog]

posted on Mar 17, 2004 - View this thread

While CD sales in the UK continue their upward march (nearly 8% this year) and UK music retailers show healthy profits, the Record Companies are gearing up to sue their British customers (ala The RIAA). Not all record companies, however, are taking the big stick approach: - Warp Records - (home of Aphex Twin, Boards of Canada and Chris Morris) steps up to the plate with high-quality music downloads, unencumbered by DRM. Go figure.
posted on Jan 15, 2004 - View this thread

"Wow! I have a lot of shows to watch... Will I ever catch up?” Reuters reports on TiVo addiction, and it's tonight's #1 story on Keith Olbermann's Countdown, a news show with less viewers than TiVo has owners. When they put up a transcript, it'll be in here. Still, Keith asked one very good question: "Is it just part of the inevitable pattern of technology that everything starts as a luxury, becomes a necessity and finally becomes something for which we need therapy?" (I was able to do my own transcription because... I got it on my TiVo!)
posted on Nov 12, 2003 - View this thread

Ever since I became a TiVo addict, I've found myself wanting to use its features in real life, wishing I could rewind & replay moments of random comedy & chaos, usually involving my pugs. Soon, thanks the good folks at Deja View, I will be able to, with the help of a head mounted micro video camera unit that is always on, recording a 30 second buffer of real time, and up to four hours of manually recordable space for once you activate the record button. The scourge of ephemera will be wiped out in our lifetime.
posted on Jun 19, 2003 - View this thread

The Problem With Music In a band? Thinking of signing to a major? Stop and read this. Recording engineer Steve Albini has a message for you. Get the independent music religion. Sure, you might not make money, but you would not have anyway. An interesting message to come from a guy whose vitae includes many major label projects, but in interviews, he defends his indie credibility ably by disclosing his practice of charging the client (majors and independents) what they can afford. All that being said, this guy is more technician than indie messiah, and though the guy can be a little outspoken, he is certainly one of my heroes. This essay is old, but not out-dated.
posted on Mar 10, 2003 - View this thread

Warren Zevon, one of the best damned songwriters I've ever heard, patron saint of many famous curmudgeons, and a real cool SOB in his own right, turns 56 today.

Last September, he was told he had inoperable lung cancer, and so he's living out his remaining years in the studio, recording as much as he can. I for one am glad he's got at least one more album in him. Is there a moral to this tale? Enjoy every sandwich.
posted on Jan 24, 2003 - View this thread

American movie, recording and software executives could be prohibited from entering Australia or extradited to face criminal charges if a copyright protection bill before the US Congress passes into law.
posted on Aug 22, 2002 - View this thread

Bloop! Scientists have revealed a mysterious recording that they say could be the sound of a giant beast lurking in the depths of the ocean. Researchers have nicknamed the strange unidentified sound picked up by undersea microphones "Bloop."
Is it Cthulu? Communist robot sea monsters [pdf]?
posted on Jun 13, 2002 - View this thread

Real World Studios If you were a recording musician, how could you not want to record here at least once? A gorgeous environment that's inspiring on mulitple levels. Peter Gabriel deserves more credit than he gets. He's a forward thinking, decent guy who never stops trying. Now - release "Up" dammit.
posted on Apr 8, 2002 - View this thread

I think the recording industry has finally gotten it right. Let the post-post-Napster era commence!
posted on Dec 21, 2001 - View this thread

Audio from Flight 93 - Pennsylvania (Realvideo) Somehow ABCNews got ahold of this and made it an "exclusive" on Primetime Live. Certainly chilling, but also seemingly exploitative.
posted on Nov 15, 2001 - View this thread

Carson Daly signs record deal. The VJ is getting his own record label in a deal with Sony. "I get so many tapes from great musicians," said Daly at the MTV Video Music Awards. "I usually give them away to friends, and then they become huge." Yeah, just what the music industry needs, the Daly Recording Corp.
posted on Sep 10, 2001 - View this thread

Ken Kesey's page, in which: He offers to burn copies of about two hundred minutes of recordings that he made of Neil Cassady, driving the Magic Bus, in 1964. Here's the kicker....no credit cards, no C.O.D.....you order them, they send them, they bill you, you pay them. Trust me, folks, if you're a fan of the Beats, this is amazing stuff. Hearing Kerouac's muse rant into the night while ballin' down the highway is a rare treat indeed.
posted on Sep 25, 2000 - View this thread