https://padlet.com/matty224/8dt8bckk2cmz Padlet #1 en-us 2018-05-04 14:09:45 UTC 2018-06-08 21:26:10 UTC hello@padlet.com matty224 https://padlet.com/matty224/8dt8bckk2cmz/wish/266353128 Technology is ever changing and improving in this increasingly digitalised and modern world. As consumers we must adapt to these changes. From the first effective lightbulb, invented by Thomas Edison in 1879, to the first car invented by Karl Benz in 1885. These examples compared to where we are now in terms of technology is astounding.
Jump forward a few decades from then to the 1930's and we were introduced to the first digital electronic computer. This piece of technology was devised by John Vincent Atanasoff and revolutionised the world.

In the music industry, early technology consisted of the gramophone again invented by Edison in 1877. This allowed music to be played and recored simultaneously for the first time. It underwent numerous improvements for several decades until vinyl records were produced.

Vinyl records were flat circular shapes first made out of shellac, then PVC. The PVC vinyls began production in the early 1950's and quickly became the consumers item. They were played on record players similar to the later versions of the gramophone or phonograph. This was the main format for listening to music and even surpassed sales even past the next stage of music consumption in the form of cassette tapes. The first cassette tape was released by Phillips in the early 1960's and became a more portable option for consuming music.

These replaced reel to reel tapes used in early tape recorders in the music industry. They were often used with multitrack recording machines and ultimately led to improvements in the recording technology. In the late 1960's, the cassette was adapted to be suitable for car dashboards which impacted the number of radio consumers. From the late 1970's to the 2000's, cassette players and Compact Discs (1982) were the two platforms for listening to music. CD's became increasingly popular due to their easy distribution and accessibility. Devices such as the iconic Walkman was one of the most popular pieces of technology to accommodate this. This often seen a connection with fashion and film as many movies at this time featured actors/actresses sporting these portable players. This has even had an impact in contemporary movies. In 2014, Marvel released "Guardians of the Galaxy" which featured Chris Pratt's character Peter Quill with one of these as his prized possession.

The 80's were a turning point for the industry. The digital age of music had arrived and with it, new technology and a new wave of audiences meant a drastic makeover. MIDI technology was introduced, allowing musicians to manipulate and programme sounds for instruments. Synthesisers such as the Fairlight, Roland Juno and the Moog were particularly popular. Drum machines like the Linn Drum were also heavily used during this period. The 80's also saw a connection with video as a new feature of music consumption. MTV were the main company to introduce music videos. Iconic videos include Duran Duran's "Rio" and Michael Jackson's "Thriller" among many others.

By the 2000's, production and recording methods changed again. Digital Audio Workstations (DAW's) began replacing traditional analogue technology, and CD's became mass distributed. Companies such as DigiDesign released their ProTools software however many early versions were not efficient enough to perform as well without analogue technologies. In the mid 2000's the industry seen another major change. Streaming became the next big trend. This consisted of downloading songs online (often illegally) from websites such as Napster and Limewire. Streaming, combined with Apple's popular iPod which allowed users to download songs on to a small phone like device. This had a massive impact on physical formats such as CD's.

Nowadays, websites such as Spotify, YouTube and iTunes dominate music consumption. However, recently vinyl records have seen a resurgence in sales due to the ongoing retro/hipster trend which has seen a large number of youth investing in record players and vinyl records. This has had a positive impact on the music business as music shops that faced shutting down are now thriving under this trend.


References

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_disc
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_Cassette
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_audio_workstation
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multitrack_recording
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_recording_and_reproduction

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