Haunted by the Dynamophone

 At a Certain Point, a man had a haunting Idea about broadcasting Sound:

Thaddeus Cahill: Electric Music

Let's quickly describe the device he imagined first, the Telharmonium:

Cahill built a large, quite a few tons heavy transformer bank (The Mark I weighed 7 tons. The Mark II weighed almost 200 tons). It is considered the first electromechanical musical instrument dating from c. 1896. Electric tubes were neither invented than transistors, so this was the only contraption he could use to generate electric music sounds. He considered it as an electric organ.

As amplifiers also were not invented yet, he invented some kind of loudspeakers (basically horns with an electrically driven diaphragm, today known as "Tweeter") for live performances, which were attended and received quite well, for example by Mark Twain.

Cahill also seems to be the inventor of additive synthesis, as he added so-called "color wheels" to his contraption, which did the job.

But then, Thaddeus Cahill developed another, revolutionary idea:

He wanted to distribute his electrical signal to people out there. So, since radio was still in its diapers the only possible network was: 

Phone lines, powered by his second device, called the "Dynamophone"

It got advertised in newspapers when transmissions would be available, so one could dial in and pick up the receiver at the right time.

There are no recordings available of the devices, nor tangible remains. The devices were too heavy, and quickly overcome, by more simple and less energy-consuming devices.

It can be said, Thaddeus Cahill's machines caused a lot of "Crosstalk" along the not yet shielded phone lines. So one having a phone conversation could have easily been overtaken by outer worldly sounds.

Last but least, for sure, this must be the first known synthesizer, with a commercial streaming service attached.

by nokturnal