The Timeless Evolution of Music Records
The Birth of Music Records The story of music records begins in the late 1800s with the invention of the phonograph by Thomas Edison in 1877. This groundbreaking device could record and reproduce sound, marking the beginning of the recorded music era. Initially, these early recordings were made on cylindrical tubes, which were eventually replaced by the more durable and higher-quality flat discs developed by Emile Berliner in the 1890s. These discs, made from shellac, became the standard format for music records, and the era of the 78 RPM (revolutions per minute) record was born. The Rise of Vinyl The introduction of vinyl records in the mid-20th century revolutionized the music industry. Vinyl, a type of plastic, offered several advantages over shellac, including greater durability and the ability to produce higher-fidelity sound. The 33 1/3 RPM LP (long play) record, introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, could hold up to 22 minutes of music per side, making it ideal fo...