Recording and Technology
Phonograph
- When
- 1877 onward
- Where
- Global
Sound recording changed how music could be preserved, sold and heard.
Radio broadcasting
- When
- Early 20th century
- Where
- Global
Broadcast networks dramatically widened musical circulation.
Electrical recording
- When
- Mid-1920s onward
- Where
- Global
Microphones and electrical amplification transformed recorded sound.
Magnetic tape
- When
- Mid-20th century
- Where
- Global
Tape enabled editing, overdubbing and new studio composition techniques.
Musique concrète
- When
- Late 1940s onward
- Where
- Europe
Pierre Schaeffer and collaborators composed with recorded sound as material.
Multitrack recording
- When
- 1950s–1960s onward
- Where
- Global
Separate tracks enabled layered recording and detailed postproduction.
Synthesizer development
- When
- Mid-20th century onward
- Where
- Global
Electronic instruments broadened the palette of designed sound.
MIDI
- When
- Introduced 1983
- Where
- Global
A digital protocol enabled electronic instruments and computers to exchange performance messages.
Digital audio workstation
- When
- Late 20th century onward
- Where
- Global
Computer-based recording, editing and production became widespread.
Streaming era
- When
- 2000s onward
- Where
- Global
On-demand platforms changed discovery, distribution and musician economics.
Immersive audio
- When
- 21st century
- Where
- Global
Spatial formats create multichannel or object-based listening experiences.
Computer and algorithmic music
- When
- 1957 onward
- Where
- Global
In 1957 the Illiac Suite became one of the first pieces composed with a computer. Composers have since used rules, chance and programs to generate music, raising lasting questions about authorship.
Other chapters: Early Musical Cultures · Medieval and Renaissance Worlds · Baroque and Classical · The Nineteenth Century · Traditions Around the World · The Twentieth Century
Dates mark documented developments or approximate periods, not the beginnings of traditions. Many histories run side by side. Dates are given as the timeline records them. Where a date is approximate, the entry says so.
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