Centuries of Sound
July 5, 2017 6:04 PM   Subscribe

"Centuries of Sound is an attempt to produce a set of mixes for every year of recorded sound. Starting in 1860, a mix will be posted every month until we catch up with the present day. So far we are still in the very early days, where a very limited selection of recordings are available, but as we get into the 20th century I hope to include the widest possible spread, both in terms of geography and genre. This will mean that experts will be required. If you are interested in putting yourself forward as an expert on Rembetika, early microtonal recordings, French political speeches, Tagore songs or anything else, then please do drop me a line..."

The project started at the beginning of the year, and is currently up to the year 1892. In addition to the wordpress site, you can follow along on twitter, facebook, and mixcloud (where the mixes are hosted).
posted by naju (8 comments total) 54 users marked this as a favorite
 
Fascinating. Listening to 1892, the latest posting. This is so squarely in my sweet spot. Thank you.
posted by the sobsister at 6:35 PM on July 5, 2017 [1 favorite]


A brilliant idea, brilliantly executed. I admire the time & effort that's been put into contextualizing each year with related history and artwork.
posted by kmkrebs at 7:28 PM on July 5, 2017 [1 favorite]


Beauty and human depravity both captured by artists at the time...and by that I mean every time, throughout all era, including ours. Why human depravity as a subject for aesthetic striving? Good question. Many answers.
posted by kozad at 9:09 PM on July 5, 2017


Depravity sells.
posted by phenylphenol at 10:14 PM on July 5, 2017


Nicely done and I will check back. It reminds me of "Peelenium" which was compiled by British DJ John Peel in 1999 and which featured music from 1900-2000. All of which have been collected at the linked page.
posted by rongorongo at 10:54 PM on July 5, 2017 [3 favorites]


Depravity sells

It's interesting. Did you ever hang out with the kind of philosophy person who is really into ethics ? "How to be good" and all that shit. Leaves you longing for some good old-fashioned depravity.
posted by thelonius at 1:56 AM on July 6, 2017 [1 favorite]


Then there's Richard Thompson's 1,000 Years of Popular Music. Which also has a YouTube video.
posted by Paul Slade at 3:14 AM on July 6, 2017 [1 favorite]


ooooo this is so my bag.
posted by Theta States at 7:23 PM on July 6, 2017


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