Synergy in America's early talking machine industry: Technological, commercial, cultural, and musical factors in band and orchestral recordings, 1894--1917.

摘要

During the formative period 1896–1917 the American recording industry enjoyed a closer interaction between its constitutive elements—management, technological development and artistic production—than it has in later years. American ensemble recording, in particular that of bands and orchestras, has been largely overlooked by scholars in favor of other recording genres, notably classical vocal and vocal/instrumental jazz; furthermore, the contributions and importance of musicians connected with ensemble recording, especially those who were contract employees of the major studios, has been downplayed, dismissed, or ignored by recording historians. This thesis examines the development of ensemble recording in the United States, its musical, social, and technical contexts, and how the staff musicians of the major recording companies worked within their organizations in the creation of an entertainment arts industry.