Music recorded in February 1925
February 1925 was a month of simultaneous changes in public health, transportation, international politics, and culture. In the Alaska Territory of the United States, serum was delivered to Nome, which was suffering from a diphtheria outbreak, becoming a symbolic event for cold-weather transport and infectious disease control. On February 2nd, the Air Mail Act of 1925 was passed in the United States, establishing the institutional foundation for civil air transport. In Geneva, the International Opium Convention was signed on February 19th, advancing international cooperation in drug control. In Germany, on February 27, Adolf Hitler (1889–1945) declared the re-establishment of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei), and on February 28, President Friedrich Ebert (1871–1925) died. In the United States, on February 21, The New Yorker was launched, marking the arrival of a new weekly magazine reflecting urban culture.
Confirmed recordings this month: 0
Summary of information regarding the recording from February 1925
In February 1925, while existing mechanical recording methods continued, the transition to electrical recording was beginning to become a reality in the recording industry. Columbia Phonograph Company, Inc. and Victor Talking Machine Company were confirmed to have been active in recording and introducing new methods throughout February, and Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company, Thomas A. Edison, Inc., OKeh (General Phonograph Corporation), and Gennett Records (Starr Piano Co.) can also be traced for recording activities in the same month. Furthermore, Plaza Music Company, which supported the budget record market, also appeared in industry magazines that month, making February 1925 a month in which industry movements could be seen on both the recording production and sales and distribution sides.
Columbia
Columbia Phonograph Company, Inc. has been confirmed to have recording activity on February 5, 1925, indicating that regular recordings continued throughout that month. In addition, in late February, a group of test masters for electrical recordings, which would later be released, appeared, suggesting that the company had taken steps to put the new method into practical use that month.
- https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/date/browse/1925-02-05
- https://mainspringpress.org/tag/columbia-western-electric-experimental-test-recordings-pressings/
Victor
Recording activity, including test discs, was confirmed at the Victor Talking Machine Company on February 3, 1925, and in late February, experimental electro-recorded discs, which would later be released, were also produced. In February, Victor was in a transitional period, moving to new recording methods while maintaining its regular recording operations.
- https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/date/browse/1925-02-03
- https://mainspringpress.org/2024/01/23/western-electric-test-recordings-the-victor-talking-machine-company-test-pressings-1924-1925/
Brunswick
Recording activity at the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company can be confirmed on February 3rd and February 11th, 1925. Industry magazines from the same month also featured advertisements for Brunswick Records, indicating their involvement in both production and distribution.
- https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/date/browse/1925-02-03
- https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/date/browse/1925-02-11
- https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Talking-Machine/20s/Talking-Machine-1925-02.pdf
Edison
Recording activity at Thomas A. Edison, Inc. can be confirmed as taking place on February 3, 1925. At least at this point, the company continued recording throughout February.
OK
At the General Phonograph Corporation's OKeh label, recording activity can be confirmed as of February 3, 1925. The discography, organized by date, shows that the brand continued to produce new recordings throughout February.
Jennette
Gennett Records, a subsidiary of Starr Piano Co., has a recording activity dated February 5, 1925. Gennett continued to produce masters throughout February, indicating that Midwestern labels were active that month as well.
Plaza Music
Plaza Music Company was a distributor rather than a manufacturer, but its name and address can be found in the February 1925 issue of an industry magazine. Contemporary documents from that month confirm that the company was positioned within the industry as a base for the distribution of low-priced records as of February.
