Musical Theater Recordings

Musical Theater Recordings Edison’s commercial recording and manufacture of cylinders began in 1889, and the dominant format of the 78-rpm disc was introduced by Berliner in 1894. Theatrical recordings only became popular in the first decade of the 20th century. Songs composed for the musical theater were written to be performed live, and no thought was given to preserving theater performance materials that were quickly discarded. The earliest catalogs for cylinders and 78-rpm discs contain a…