The age of music spans as long as humans have existed, at least. The history of recorded music, however, is much more recent. Before music was available in medium, the only way to consume it was to listen to a live concert, or make it yourself.

The History of Recorded Music

1877

July 1877, Thomas Edison’s invention of the phonogram

1877

Emile Berliner invents the gramophone

1928

Magnetic tape recording is invented.

1948

Columbia Records introduces the LP (Vinyl Records)

1963

Philips introduces the cassette tape

1964

8 track tapes become a popular form of recorded music

1979

Sony introduces the Walkman

1983

The Compact Disc (CD) and related players debut

1990

The CD-R (recordable) enters the market

1993

MP3 standard published

1999

Napster’s initial release

2001

Apple release’s the iPod

2003

Apple launches iTunes store

2008

Spotify is launched