ABSTRACT
The Invention The Parisian Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville (1817-1879) was the first to make a sound recording, in 1857. He developed a visual way to convert sound waves into physical lines on a rotating cylinder, applying for a patent and his invention of the phonautograph.1 Scott de Martinville had invented a process to record a soundwave, but not how to play it back. As a matter of fact, when we pause and think about it, the entertainment and music industry has always been device-driven, so let’s start this chapter by taking a look into the history of essential processes and devices we now take for granted that allowed recordings to happen, which led to the development of record labels and fostered other entrepreneurial activities that still support the modern industry.
