History of Electronic Music
Jonathan Pickard
The history of electronic music is a confusing one; it is interconnected with the
development of technology and musical creativity. Together, this creates an infinite
number of historical steps leading to electronic music known today. Thusly, this paper is
not meant to be inclusive, but an overview of important and interesting facts surrounding
the development of electronic music.
In the 2nd century BC Ktesibios invented the Hydraulis. Ktesibios was fascinated
by pneumatics (The study of the mechanical properties of air and gases.) and wrote a
dissertation on hydraulic systems and how they could be used for powering mechanical
devices. His most famous invention the Hydraulis used water to regulate air pressure
inside an organ. Around this time other instruments were created in Greece, including
the Aeolian harp, which used strings that were activated by wind currents.
Almost two millennia later, in the 1500‟s, the first mechanically driven organs
were built. Further, Done Nicola Vicentino, an Italian composer, invented the
Archicembalo. The Archicembalo was a “harpsichord-like” instrument with six
keyboards and thirty-one steps to an octave. In the 17th century Blaise Pascal developed
the first calculating machine leading the way for modern electronic music, which is based
heavily on computational devices (computers).
Many other devices lead up to the computer revolution. In 1833 Charles
Babbage, with the help of Ada Lovelace, built the Difference Enginer, a large mechanical
computer. The previous year Samuel Morse invented the telegraph. And a director of a
telegraph factory (Hipps) later invents the first Electromechanical Piano in 1876. Later
that century Alezander Gram Bell realized several ways to transmit and record sounds.
In 1920 Leve Theremin invented the Aetherophone (later called the Theremin). This
instrument consists of two vacuum tube oscillators to produce beat notes. “Musical
sounds were created by „heterodyning‟ from oscillators which varied pitch.” Changing
the distance between 2 elements altered a circuit. “The instrument had a radio antenna to
control dynamics and the rod sticking out the side that controlled pitch. The performer
would move his/her hand along the rod to change pitch, while simultaneously moving
his/her other hand in proximity to the antenna.” Many composers used this instrument
(Pic. 1).
Pic. 1
In the 1930‟s the plastic audiotape was developed. A decade later Bell Labs created the
solid-state transistor, one of the most significant developments in computing. In 1953
Robert Beyer, Werner Meyer-Eppler, and Eimert began experimenting with
electronically generated sounds, giving presentations in Paris.1
The late 20th century was fill with developments considered part of modern
electronic music. In ‟55 Bebe and Loius Barron created the first electronic soundtrack
for the film “Forbidden Planet”. The Mini-Moog (in ‟71) changed Rock music,
influencing bands such as the Chemical Brothers, The Orb, Kraftwerk, Nine Inch Nails to
name a few. Pink Floyd released the Dark Site of the moon, using traditional rock
instruments and the VCS3-Synthesizer, an album that toped the charts for over a decade.
The Roland TB-303 (in ‟83) was developed using the midi-system; this launched the
production of electronic music.2
In the „sixties and „seventies a myriad new musical instruments came about,
including the electric guitar, and new keyboards such as the electric organ and piano.
Further, a whole new instrument came about, the synthesizer, which was based on analog
electronics. Early synthesizers could only play a single note at a time. To play multiple
notes musicians had to buy multiple synthesizers or record parts on tape. But, they gave
musicians a new sound, and companies like Moog and ARP couldn‟t sell them fast
enough. With the demand for synthesizers, newer, better-sounding polyphonic
synthesizers began to appear from Yamaha, Moog, Roland, and others, all able to play
multiple notes simultaneously. After polyphony, one of the most important
advancements in synthesizer technology was the incorporation of programmable memory
into instruments. Previously, musicians needed extravagant keyboard setups on stage,
because each instrument could only be setup to produce a single sound per show. The
next big step came in 1979, when some keyboards came equipped with computer
interface plugs on the back. In the early eighties synthesizers were no longer a techno-
oddity, and there were more companies from Japan, the US and Europe producing them.
To progress the music industry had to adopt the methodology of standards, just as
computer designers have long depended on certain standards to ensure the compatibility
of computers and other devices. Twice a year, members of the National Association of
Music Merchandisers hold a huge convention to show off new products. In ‟82 at the
request of Dave Smith, president of Sequential Circuit, a meeting took place between
popular synthesizer companies. They discussed the adoption of a universal standard for
transmitting and receiving of musical performance information, between all types of
electronic instruments. The proposal went though a number of revisions and became
know as Musical Instrument Digital Interface, or MIDI. In three years almost no
electronic instrument was made that didn‟t have a MIDI plug, and soon MIDI was used
for thousands of applications. MIDI was meant to be flexible, and since its creation there
have been several add-ons, yet MIDI has remained simple and compatibly with all other
MIDI instruments.3
In recent years MP3s have come into existence, allowing amateurs and
professionals to publish their own music on the Internet. The future of electronic music
is unknown, but it is almost certain that it‟ll be along side of computers, which have
increasingly become part of our daily lives. Some futurists believe that virtual reality
will allow for the creation of new musical instruments, so advanced that it‟ll make
traditional instruments obsolete.
Sources:
1) http://music.dartmouth.edu/~wowem/electronmedia/music/eamhistory.html
2) http://tinpan.fortunecity.com/doowop/509/history/
3) http://www.mtsu.edu/~dsmitche/rim419/midi/HTMLs/MIDHIS~1.HTM
Pic1) http://www.exploratorium.edu/xref/exhibits/ images/theremin.gif