Popular Music:  The Impact of New Technology

In this module, we have learned about the changes that occurred in Western Classical music over the past few centuries.  You have listened to a small sampling of the many works composed during these time periods.  Additionally, you have discovered that folk music and other types of popular music evolved alongside their Classical counterparts.

  While musical styles evolved during the early 20th Century, new technology allowed musicians to record their music for the first time.  In 1877, Thomas Edison invented the phonograph.  Edison never intended to design a device for recording music; he intended to create a new way for business owners to dictate letters and record contracts.

Edison resisted using his new technology for music until he saw there was actually a large market for it. The consumer desire for recorded music soon grew so large that it could not be ignored. The music created was in some ways influenced by the limitations of the technology.  For example, the number of songs a record contained was limited, which influenced how long songs could be.  Songwriters learned to create catchy tunes that were just a few minutes in length, and developed new song structures for popular music.  By listening to recordings, people could hear new styles of music, and listen to their favorite songs again and again.  Audiences didn’t need a lot of money to hear the most popular artists of the day, as a record brought their voices directly to their homes.