On
January 16th, the Smithsonian channel is premiering a six-part series
titled "Rock 'N' Roll Inventions." The series discusses the rise of
instrumentation and sound within the growth of the music genre. The
first 45-minute episode titled "This Damn Music," looks at the growth of
devices that were able to produce the growth of music to the masses of
fans.
As
classic footage and newly recorded interviews tell the story of how the
recording of music was first invented and how it has grown into today's
streaming world. Recording artists like The Kinks' Dave Davies and
Graham Nash discuss, along with music experts like Bob Harris and Greg
Milnerand, about the growth of the jukebox and the 45 rpm single. The
full LP movement in the U.S. in the fifties, began with Elvis Presley
and Chuck Berry, but music critics like Bob Stanley mark Lonnie
Donegan's "Rock Island Line" as one of the most important song's in
British music history, that may have inspired the birth of The Beatles.
One of
the most important inventions for music was the transistor radio in
1954. It allowed young music fans to listen to music wherever they went,
without the need for a plug and cord. The episode also dives into the
use of stereo effects in music verses monotone recordings. Then it moves
on to discuss the movement from albums, to cassettes to compact discs
and the associated listening device, from ghetto blasters to Walkman to
the CD player. The episode closes with the latest revolution of
streaming music on the smallest devices ever created.
Other
upcoming episodes discuss the birth of the electric guitar, the rise of
keyboards in music and the technology behind live rock concerts. To find
out more about this new six-part series "Rock 'N' Roll Inventions," please
visit smithsonianchannel.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment