Despite spending much of my time recording
editing an mixing in the digital domain, one
of my favourite "music reproducers" is still a
vintage HMV gramophone.

In a radio in interview (1960's ?) Fred Hager who
had been musical director with OkeH Records from
1920 to about 1940, talked about acoustic recording
and the transition from the first vertical cuts in 1916
to lateral cut which had become the standard by
1920, at which time the record's rotation speed was
agreed - 78.26 rpm.

Then in April 1925 the first electrical recording was
released on the Victor label. This was a quantum
leap, but it is unfortunate that the shellac format hides
from the listener how good these old recordings
actually were. But digital restoration can do a
great deal to show us how they must have sounded
when the original waxes were recorded.

Here is "Chlo-E" one of my favourite early
recordings by the Duke Ellington Orchestra.

Firstly, the original 78rpm shellac recorded
from the HMV gramophone with a
thorn needle, and a Neumann U47.

http://www.kolumbus.fi/Iain.Churches/Music/Chloe01.mp3

Then my digitally "restored" version using CEDAR

http://www.kolumbus.fi/Iain.Churches/Music/Chloe02.mp3


Enjoy

Iain