[78-L] Orville Knapp

David Lennick dlennick at sympatico.ca
Mon Oct 13 20:27:33 PDT 2008


J.F. Bennett wrote:
> Gents,
> 
> O.K., Okeh, OKeh ;-) 76 as a starting point it is. Thank you all. So Knapp
> was still with the Nighthawks.'25. I wonder did audiophiles of the twenties
> have these speed conversations? Did they multi-speed stroboscopes and pitch
> pipes, did they make notations on sleeves? I assume some must have. Anyone
> ever come across contemporary letters, books or articles concerning proper
> speeds?
> 
> 
> Phonographically,
> 
> John B.

Fact is..nobody cared! Cutting tables and phonographs were equally unreliable 
and folks were just glad to have MUSIC. It mattered a little more to 
connoisseurs of vocal recordings, to the point where HMV began printing 
something like the proper playback speed on the labels of its reissues of 
historic recordings, but that was in the 40s and 50s. Ever hear George Bernard 
Shaw talk about how the average person doesn't have the faintest idea how to 
play gramophone records at the correct speed? Even today, I'll sit at a CAPS 
meeting and someone will demonstrate a cylinder player with a Billy Murray 
record sounding as if he was on helium, and they'll think it's just wonderful 
(the seller AND the buyer).

dl



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