麻豆约拍

Singer Cerys Matthews and music expert Tristram Penna continue their investigation into the very earliest days of the recording industry in the UK.

Tristram joins Christopher Proudfoot, CLPGS chairman at the EMI Archive Trust in Hayes.

This houses Fred Gaisberg's own collection of over 14,000 7 inch discs dating from 1898, plus an amazing collection of early gramophones.

Cerys and Tristram visit Wyndham's Theatre in London's West End. Here they meet actor Kenneth Cranham. Charles Wyndham was a famous actor/impresario who built this theatre in 1899. A disc of him reciting a poem recorded in 1898 is played on stage - probably the first time his voice has been heard there for over 100 years. This disc has not been previously broadcast.

As an actor himself, Wyndham had this theatre built to his own specifications so the acoustics are incredibly good - and even today actors require no amplification.

The recording process of the Gramophone Company back in 1898 had certain technological limitations - so they needed the right voices to put on disc. Famous actors of the day were an obvious choice. The people with Gramophones in their own home would be incredibly proud to have the latest speech from actors like Charles Wyndham to impress their peers.

For those less fortunate who couldn't afford a Gramophone in their own home, there were Gramophone evenings in theatres across the country where they could go along and pay a shilling or so and hear the latest speeches.

It was also at this point the Victorians realised that recording famous people of the day would be good for their future legacy.

The early recordings are courtesy of the EMI Archive Trust

A Sue Clark Production for 麻豆约拍 Radio 4, first broadcast in November 2015.

Show less