We Are Time

Above is a photo of one of 10 Berliner Records I found in a cheap boxlot at an auction a couple of months ago. Also pictured is the mail package it was presumably in.
Don't know what they are or what thier significance is?
Neither did I until I did some research on them.
These were some of the earliest recordings ever made. Actualy Emile Berliner was the guy who created the disc format of records that were first seen and heard by the public in the 1890s. Before him, only cylinders were made.
Berliner invented the Gramophone player. Learn more about him here.http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif

The one pictured above is different from other Berliner recordings in that it did not include the usual stamp that was common on most Berliner's. This one was blank. It was also recorded by a Geo Gaskin on Oct. 29, 1895 (over 110 years ago!)

Another thing I found out when doing some internet research on Berliner was that the artist/musician had to record upwards of 100 times a day. Due to the rough recording devices these pioneers used--they could only record a few at a time--meaning that it is quite common for the ones that exist today--to be unique recordings.
Also--it probably meant that by the end of the recording sessions--the voice or hands of the musicians were exhausted beyond belief!

The quality of these recordings is pretty poor compared to todays standards--or even what came about say 20 years later.

They are pioneer recordings, and are certainly interesting pieces to hear--time capsules of music and recording history of the late 19th century.