Music recorded in October 1895
October 1895 was a month in which political tensions and the acceleration of urban life simultaneously surfaced. On October 8, 1895, Empress Myeongseong (1851–1895) of the Joseon Dynasty (Joseon) was assassinated, causing great turmoil in the diplomatic environment in East Asia. On October 21, 1895, Tainan, the stronghold of the Republic of Formosa, fell, and the departure of Liu Yongfu (1837–1917) marked the final collapse of the regime. In Europe, on October 22, 1895, a train failed to stop at Gare de l'Ouest station and crashed through the station building, symbolically recording the light and dark sides of modern transportation. Also in October 1895, Hirohisa Segi (1852–1939) founded the advertising agency Hakuhodo in Japan, laying the foundation for information distribution centered on magazine advertising.
Confirmed recordings this month: 0
Summary of information on recordings made in October 1895
October 1895 marks the intersection of systems, technology, and actual production surrounding disc records. Emile Berliner (1851–1929) founded a company and patents were filed, and later that month, an entry for discs, complete with specific recording dates, appears in the University of California, Santa Barbara Library's Discography of American Historical Recordings.
Founding of the Berliner Gramophone Company
On October 8, 1895, Emile Berliner (1851–1929) founded the Berliner Gramophone Company in Philadelphia, establishing a system for the flatbed record business. The establishment of a company based on the reproduction and distribution of flatbed records expanded the framework for the continuous supply of sound recordings as a commodity.
- https://www.immigrantentrepreneurship.org/entry.php?rec=171
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emile_Berliner
Grant of U.S. Patent No. 548,623
The framework for duplication technology can be seen in United States Patent No. 548,623, "Sound-record and method of making the same," dated October 29, 1895. The presentation of a process for duplicating disc records became one of the institutional supports that transformed sound recordings from "one-off physical objects" to "reproducible commodities."
- https://www.loc.gov/collections/emile-berliner/articles-and-essays/gramophone/
- https://patents.google.com/patent/US548623A/en
Berliner recording of October 29, 1895
The entry for George J. Gaskin (1863–1920) in the University of California, Santa Barbara Library's Discography of American Historical Recordings lists songs such as "When You Know the Girl You Love Loves You," which was first recorded on October 29, 1895, on a 7-inch record for the Berliner Gramophone Company, suggesting that multiple titles were recorded simultaneously on the same day.
Berliner recording of October 31, 1895
Similarly, under the entry for George J. Gaskin (1863–1920), we find "Sally in our alley," first recorded on a 7-inch record for the Berliner Gramophone Company on October 31, 1895. The entries also include items with inconsistent performer notations, suggesting that the credits and orchestrations for these early recordings were managed in a fluctuating manner.
