Magic Music from the Telharmonium (Hardcover)

by Reynold Weidenaar (Author) "The history of American invention is often told as glamorous tales of the inevitable..." (more)
Key Phrases: patent agent, musical broadcasting, Théodor Puskás, Thaddeus Cahill, New York, Telharmonic Hall (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
It was 1906. "Get Music on Tap Like Gas or Water" promised the headlines, and soon the public was enchanted with inventor Thaddeus Cahill's (1867-1934) electrical music by wire The Telharmonium was a 200-ton behemoth that created numerous musical timbres and could flood rooms with sound. It was installed at Telharmonic Hall in New York, across from the Metropolitan Opera. People thronged to attend four daily concerts there, listening as the music poured from huge horns attached to telephone receivers. Beginning with the first wire transmission of music in 1851, covering the three instruments that were constructed, and ending with efforts to find a home for the only surviving Telharmonium in 1951, this definitive account of the first music synthesizer will interest anyone concerned with the roots of electronic and computer music. The extensive bibliography is a valuable source for historians of musical instruments and cable broadcasting, as well as for technologists and students of American culture. With 47 photographs and illustrations.

About the Author
Reynold Weidenaar is Associate Professor of Communication at William Paterson University, Wayne, NJ.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 436 pages
• Publisher: The Scarecrow Press, Inc. (January 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0810826925
• ISBN-13: 978-0810826922
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,744,358 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Poignant story of a musical pioneer, April 21, 2000

By	T. Hooper (USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

If you are interested in the story of Cahill and his mammoth musical instrument, the Telharmonium, you will find this book to be the most authoritative source of information on this fascinating invention and it's ignoble end. Weidenaar reconstructs the story of Cahill's invention from a myriad of documents and interviews, and truly shows the inventors vision and persistence in the face of ultimately insurmountable obstacles over a course of many years. Based on the authors Phd, this book is somewhat scholarly and many pages are taken up with appendices and bibliography. Regardless, it is a fascinating read for anyone interested in the early origins of electronic music to see how an inventor could manage to implement such a concept at the turn of the century before the advent of true electronics. I personally found it fascinating to see how a system invented before 1900 predated many modern concepts of music synthesis and distribution, and I saw similarity between the Telharmonium venture and many hi-tech startups of the modern age. Thaddeus Cahill was truly a man before his time, and Weidenaar's book provides Cahill with the recognition he has deserved for many years.