The Very First Recordings (1859-1879)

The first successful sound recording ever made was of a 435 hz tuning fork made by Edouard-Leon Scott de Martinville.
They are taken from transcriptions of sources from The French Academy of Sciences, and The Edison Museum. The earliest recordings made with the Phonautograph, were originally realized in 2008 by the Livermore Laboratory by First Sounds.
The Edison recording is from the earliest known tin foil recording that exists, The sound in the background is audience laughter. The cornet is the earliest recording of a musical instrument ever made. The name of the player is unknown.
Credits: First Sounds.Org (Scott-de-Martinville) The Edison Museum (Edison)
For an update and new restoration of the Edison Demo, visit • The St Louis Demo 1878...
NOTE: Subsequent research by Patrick Feaster has determined, definitively, that this is the actual voice of Eduard-Leon Scott-de-Martinville.
Subsequent voice-print research on the Edison foil suggests that this recording is almost certainly Edison, but historic, documentary evidence has not yet been found. This puts the odds at about 99.9% that this is him.
We recommend paying a visit to the First Sounds site. There are more recordings, and very interesting background information about these amazing, historic sounds.
Note: The word "coronet" is a typo. Since reloading would have caused a loss of all comments and data, the post remains as-is. The proper spelling, of course, is "cornet".
Historical note: A lot of people comment that Edison "stole" everything and did not invent them. This is completely false. Edison invented many of his own products, including the phonograph. The idea of recording sound on metal and playing it back was entirely his own, and it is well documented.
Mastered in 2018
Engineer: Paul Howard
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[@Kaddywompous]

So Scott was the first person in history to hear a recording of his own voice and think “I really sound like THAT??”

[@ArthurM0rgan63]

No, the problem is he had no device to play what he had recorded. He died without knowing how he sounded like.

[@stevegreenhorn934]

Actually this was probably the first call from duct cleaning.

[@kraftwerklover69]

You gotta also consider that the recording is almost 150 years old now, and it probably got worse over time

[@withinyouwithutyu1324]

@@ArthurM0rgan63 If he had no way to hear what he was recording then how'd he know he was even recording?

[@talmoskowitz5221]

@@withinyouwithutyu1324 He could see the variability of the traces in the chymograph. That's why he used the tuning fork: to both calibrate and verify the variability in recording speed.

[@carealoo744]

Still better than my mic.

[@plush8531]

Lol

[@darkdiddler1439]

I can use copy and paste too

[@carealoo744]

@@darkdiddler1439 Did someone beat me to the punch with that joke?

[@carealoo744]

@@EmailBacon Wha?- I just came up with that on the spot! If someone beat me to it, I'm sorry, but I truly came up with that joke all by myself! I'm glad to see at least 53 people liked it. :)

[@carealoo744]

@@EmailBacon Jese man, way to take down the confidence of a beginner. I'm just trying to have fun guys

[@YowLife]

Since the first recording was a song, we should pay respects to the man by making a techno remix of it.

[@orangeskeleton3937]

we need to remix it

[@Nobody25000]

🤦

[@Fiery-Foxfire]

I second this

[@rosyhvideo2587]

🎵 T R A P 🎼 R E M I X 🎶 Also I third this

[@mickeyhernandez3473]

I fourth this…

[@memawscheesetiddies]

It’s crazy to think about if Scott somehow could have known that nobody in his lifetime would ever acknowledge his achievement, but that we, 150 years after his device was created, would be listening to the recordings that he made using it.

[@dancepiglover]

It would blow his mind!

[@leonardothefabulous3490]

I occasionally think the same thing about Vincent VanGogh and his paintings....

[@ACE-si4ng]

I don’t know what is more impressive The fact that the man managed to build a device that records sound at all (playback or not) 20 years before the phonograph, Or that scientists managed to take what were essentially drawings of sound on a piece of paper and turn it back into actual audio.

[@florjanbrudar692]

I'd say both is

[@MsGenXodus]

It's not strange that people can turn drawings of sound on paper into actual audio. That had been around for quite some time by the time that recording made. (sheet music) Making a machine read that paper and produce the sounds, now that is AMAZING!

[@BillyBob-qu1fs]

@@MsGenXodus With today's technology turning the drawings into sound isn't that impressive imo. >Take picture of drawing, or scan w/e >Determine the sampling rate >Walk the line getting the ranges, or assign a baseline arbitrarily >Walk the line again filling the array that holds the record >Play it back But to do it before we had modern technology, I don't even know where to begin. I can't think of any mechanical method that would work, there's no imprint or anything to follow on the paper, just colors. Maybe with early electronics you could but it would be a nightmare. Maybe an array of sensors that you project the light from the paper onto and see which sensor it hits, then pass the paper in from of the projector and record the whole thing that way. But man, even that has a ton of issues with alignment and things like that.

[@Adama.1]

@@BillyBob-qu1fs take picture or scan? Ok, can you tell me exactly how I can make such a machine at home? What do I need to build a scanner? I'd say it's impressive that humans come up with anything for the first time.

[@johnw1954]

We are using penetrating radars to "unroll" Pompeiian papyrus scrolls without damaging them.

[@michelletuband]

Hearing the cleaned-up "Au Clair de la Lune" is eerie and stunning. It's almost a shame Scott was forgotten and ignored as being too far ahead of his time until Edison reinvented audio recording and took all the fame and credit. I'm not saying that Edison stole this and a lot other ideas to popularize and perfect them, but Scott and other original inventors deserve being given a heads up.

[@isakyhadz]

True! He also stole and used Nikola Tesla’s ideas as well.

[@tokisugar]

I think its kind of scummy, but overall im glad he did because he contributed a lot to technology advancements.

[@sleepierhollow5892]

That would not be the first thing he stole

[@RS3DArchive]

There is a happy ending. Scott is now remembered in the history books as the person who invented the first audio recorder, and as the first who made recordings successfully. Ironically, Edison's first recording was lost the same day it was made, but Scott's is still with us forever.

[@meyague]

"took all the fame and credit" "I'm not saying he stole them" make up your mind!! and he did steal them, he's an uninventive prick

[@alizacelemcentauri986]

2:10 Ok I know it's super impressive that we're able to hear this absolutely ancient recording and all, but imagine hearing that at 2 am

[@asherb5134]

Exactly scared the crap out of me

[@MidnightMuffin]

It's creeping me out during broad daylight.

[@CatNapandLunatoneFan_2011]

Most Popular!

[@abraaodealmeida1903]

It's 3am and I'm hearing that

[@mtl514_]

3am for me right now, and no joke that's fricking scary

[@BlackFlagHeathen]

It’s crazy to imagine Martinville standing there one ordinary day in 1860, slowly turning a crank and singing into this weird, bulbous-looking thing, completely unaware of the magnitude of what he was doing, and that 160 years later, thousands of people would listen to his voice as actual audio on devices he couldn’t even imagine, which are capable of high-quality audio recording and playback, and that those devices would be connected through a wireless global network that he wouldn’t even have been able to imagine. Technology is amazing.

[@javierfito5077]

The recostruction is so clear. It feels like you are sitting there right next to him, it travels you 160 years to the past

[@lightyagami3492]

Well the network is not wireless at its core but your point remains. Its incredible how far we have come in a relatively short period of time.

[@thelivingdripunal2513]

That singing is so creepy sound quality really has changed

[@windsofmarchjourneyperrytr2823]

They had to be extremely loud to even be picked up.

[@lookbovine]

Please delete your comment, it is so inane.

[@lissethhernandez4950]

@@lookbovine wdym? The comments fine

[@ItsIdaho]

@@lookbovine weirdo

[@DavidMcCarthy08]

@@lookbovine what?

[@Ninyfive]

Imagine that these people did not know that over a hundred years later, people would listen to their music through small devices that fit in their pockets, while being connected to a global worldwide information network.

[@Bromon655]

Makes you wonder what will be different about our world in the next hundred years

[@peer5160]

Remember antikythera. And you might understand something else. The knowledge we have is something temporary.

[@wachamcaulid]

@@peer5160 ye

[@shahnazbegum400]

that would be high sci fi back then. high fantasy

[@maryannebrule-salahari4784]

@@Bromon655 Taking Moore's Law into effect, the difference will likely be far greater than the difference between 100 years ago and now.

[@Iguan94]

It's amazing to hear the voice of a man who was born when Napoleon was still alive. It's the voice of a man born over 200 years ago!

[@TheFirstKA]

It's so unbelievably sad that Scott died without knowing his revolutionary design

[@DouglasQuaid999]

Critics: Meh, this is just some fad that will die off just like the wireless

[@reecenewton3097]

The wireless (radio) of course came much later than the phonograph.

[@wizlish]

But remember the first music broadcast was at the end of 1906...

[@kakyoindonut3213]

that's human natural habit, and in this modern-day people were criticize NASA because instead of donating to people they "waste" their money on mars rover, while NASA technology could potentially boost humanity technology

[@1.4142]

1876: “This ‘telephone’ has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication.” - William Orton, President of Western Union. 1876: “The Americans have need of the telephone, but we do not. We have plenty of messenger boys.” - Sir William Preece, chief engineer, British Post Office. 1889: “Fooling around with alternating current (AC) is just a waste of time. Nobody will use it, ever.” - Thomas Edison. 1903: “The horse is here to stay but the automobile is only a novelty - a fad.” - President of the Michigan Savings Bank advising Henry Ford’s lawyer, Horace Rackham, not to invest in the Ford Motor Company. 1921: “The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message sent to no one in particular?” - Associates of David Sarnoff responding to the latter’s call for investment in the radio. 1926: “While theoretically and technically television may be feasible, commercially and financially it is an impossibility.” - Lee DeForest, “Father of Radio” and a pioneer in the development of sound-on-film recording used for motion pictures. He had over 180 patents. 1932: “There is not the slightest indication that nuclear energy will ever be obtainable. It would mean that the atom would have to be shattered at will.” - Albert Einstein. 1936: “A rocket will never be able to leave the Earth’s atmosphere.” - New York Times. 1946: “Television won’t be able to hold on to any market it captures after the first six months. People will soon get tired of staring at a plywood box every night.” - Darryl Zanuck, film producer, co-founder of 20th Century Fox. 1949: “Where a calculator on the ENIAC is equipped with 18,000 vacuum tubes and weighs 30 tons, computers of the future may have only 1,000 vacuum tubes and perhaps weigh one and a half tons.” - Popular Mechanics. 1957: “I have traveled the length and breadth of this country and talked with the best people, and I can assure you that data processing is a fad that won’t last out the year.” - Editor of Prentice Hall business books. 1959: “The world potential market for copying machines is 5,000 at most.” IBM told the eventual founders of Xerox. 1961: “There is practically no chance communications space satellites will be used to provide better telephone, telegraph, television or radio service inside the United States.” - T.A.M. Craven, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) commissioner. 1977: “There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in his home.” - Ken Olsen, founder of Digital Equipment Corp. 1981: “No one will need more than 637KB of memory for a personal computer. 640KB ought to be enough for anybody.” - Bill Gates, co-founder and chairman of Microsoft. 1981: “Cellular phones will absolutely not replace local wire systems.” - Marty Cooper, inventor. 1989: “We will never make a 32-bit operating system.” - Bill Gates, co-founder and chairman of Microsoft. 1992: “The idea of a personal communicator in every pocket is a “pipe dream driven by greed.” - Andy Grove, then CEO of Intel. 1995: “I predict the Internet will soon go spectacularly supernova and in 1996 catastrophically collapse.” - Robert Metcalfe, founder of 3Com, inventor of Ethernet. 2003: “The subscription model of buying music is bankrupt. I think you could make available the Second Coming in a subscription model, and it might not be successful.” - Steve Jobs, in Rolling Stone 2007: “There’s no chance that the iPhone is going to get any significant market share.” - Steve Ballmer, Microsoft CEO. “Everything that can be invented has been invented.” - Attributed to Charles H. Duell, Commissioner, U.S. Office of Patents, 1899.

[@snailsaredumb9412]

What? Wireless what? I need to know!!

[@LikaLaruku]

The second one reminds me of the 80s, when I would get bored & pick up the telephone & it would randomly pick up extremely distorted phone conversations between neighbors.

[@diaz6884]

You’re old

[@readmuvluv]

@@diaz6884 well Giorno is born in 1985

[@t0nito]

I remember that too, here in Portugal landline was converted to digital in the late 90's I believe, before that when they were purely analogue you would get crosstalk between the lines and you could hear some conversations, though most of the time they were so faint to be intelligible.

[@obnoxiouslisper1548]

@@t0nito PORTUGAL CARALHO

[@nervousbunnygaming]

as a gen z baby: WaHt?

[@shaymamohammadg3500]

3:05 I'm all emotional that his recording himself singing. It's just so pure!! :( ♡ 3:37 "Althu Scott had succeeded, nobody either knew or cared" WELL WE DO KNOW😭

[@hanaz1025]

AND CARE 😭

[@lemonadegaming8165]

That recording au clair de la lune feels so haunting yet somewhat comforting at the same time The garble that is just barely recognizeable as a man singing a tune just feels like it wasnt meant to be found

[@maggiethegamer1271]

It never was meant to be heard, it was just supposed to draw sound on a paper

[@blackbird5026]

Imagine living in the 1860's and vibing to this

[@Venti_the_bard]

Broo 😂😂😂

[@florjanbrudar692]

"Vibing" wasn't a thing back then

[@raynemichelle2996]

How could they vibe to this?

[@johnnyjoestar5193]

🕺🏽🕺🏽🕺🏽

[@Wildbill12]

Nobody would care for “vibing” to this they were to concerned with the cannon fire and gunfire of the civil war

[@ilcavaliere88]

you are here, in 2021, sitting on your sofa hanging your phone and watching this and you are listening to recordings of people born in early 1800s

[@kkhebert4813]

Yes all of that except it's 2021

[@bhok1971]

Too freaking accurate bro, NSA much?

[@ENGLISHCHIEF1]

And Jacking The Ripper hadn't struck yet back then #MindBlowing

[@rabbiezekielgoldberg2497]

No sofa, no phone.

[@Reggie-The-Dog]

@Winston Porter There won't be any people in 2121.

[@yamatekudasaii10]

6:18 when the student says their internet is slow

[@mauricioramirez9744]

To hear a human voice from 1860, from 162 years ago! Congratulations to you Monsieur de Martinville from the year 2022.

[@phillip9798]

Scott's recording is actually really really pleasant once it's cleared up! Somewhat calming, and intriguing to think that this might be the first human voice recorded! A man from the 1860s is coming through time to hum us a small tune. That's remarkable!

[@asheep7797]

It’s crazy to think that this happened only 42 years before the first flight, and only 102 years before the first trip to the moon! btw how does this comment have 1,000 likes and no replies?

[@phillip9798]

@@asheep7797great question. how does this reply come a year later and 2 days before I end up back at this video lol

[@mikethespike056]

@@phillip9798 bananamogus

[@zherean42069]

@@asheep7797 Man, this audio recording happened like in the 1800s of course it happened before the first moon landing and the first airplane

[@ommsterlitz1805]

The song he is singing is one of the most common French nursery rhyme "Au Clair de la Lune" so it's pretty amazing that he heard it as a toddler in the 1810's and that it's still as the same rhythm as today version.

[@tedcabana]

Haunting, yet amazing, to hear a voice from 160 years ago. It brings back memories of my grandmother singing Au Clair de la Lune when I was a child. Except, not so creepy.

[@RS3DArchive]

I wonder why people find it so creepy. Caught "Bad Self" video. Not too shabby. I'm a player myself. Is that a Cherry Studio you're playing, or do I see binding? Doesn't matter, I love the necks on American Les Paul's, whatever the vintage. Happy trails, sir.

[@tedcabana]

@@RS3DArchive It's a 1976 classic. I'm not sure about the sub model names. But thanks for watching Bad Self.

[@RS3DArchive]

@@tedcabana My pleasure.

[@windsofmarchjourneyperrytr2823]

Agree. Had to go look it up, though.

[@TheHatman168]

@@RS3DArchive i think its because its a distorted human voice and it falls into a audio uncanny valley its sounds human but at the same time it doesn't so our brain perceives it as creepy.

[@themattbat999]

Scott's recording isn't too bad at the beginning, you can get just a eligible glimpse of his voice, in which i find simply magical

[@soppingkitty]

Someone give Scott his moment. like this man really did that and no one cared. love you Scott !!! ❤️❤️😭😭

[@zachatck64]

We are now, we're giving him the respect he deserves

[@maxiawesomekid899]

RIP scott

[@Ultrayami]

And here we are, looking at a screen, typing on a keyboard, liking the video and moving on with our lives. This is history that we are listening to. Pure history. And, I don't know about you but I feel PRIVILEGED to be able to hear Sir Scott-de-Martinville. Thank you for changing the world, Sir Scott-de-Martinville.

[@DaftSandwich]

👏👏👏

[@Fry09294]

Everything is pure history.

[@Ultrayami]

@@Fry09294 I agree, Galgo.

[@shaynemhopkins]

kzbin.info2hRg0baS4Kk?feature=share

[@cyanimation1605]

You can frame us as unappreciative. Personally, I appreciate how far we've come even more. To be able to touch around a piece of glass with rock and lightning behind it to communicate thoughts, images, and sounds across the world instantly. It's no wonder we're all addicted to these things

[@androidmaurer7926]

It's sad that Chopin didn't live long enough to be recorded. What a shame. Imagine thay you can her him play.

[@star1923]

-but we do have some nine records by Edward Grieg from Paris, 1903.

[@worklife21c]

Him. Frederick. :)

[@lucasgk5085]

There is a Brahms' recording

[@carlosreyes5371]

Chopin died in 1849 at the age of 39.

[@Adambenhmida0000]

He died so young, It is a tragedy

[@javierfito5077]

3:38 We care Scott. 1,5 million people cared enough to click in the videos. You finally got the recognition you deserved

[@Determined_Overflow]

1.8 million people as of May 18, 2024

[@tickle_master2068]

props to restoration archive for going back in time and recording these. it takes a brave person to do it.

[@RS3DArchive]

Aw, not that brave, you should hear my recording of Cleopatra. She kept trying to shove the mic up her nose.

[@Nobilangelo]

Imagine Scott de Martinville's reaction if he could see KZbin.

[@distanianspaceagency7880]

Yeah if he was a ghost

[@cruzcrane1428]

Or if 150 years ago someone told him he would be heard singing in the year 2021

[@Gr0Mk]

Imagine what we don't know now, and people will know after 150years

[@DoomKid]

I hope he’d be happy that a video with his first ever audio recording is being enjoyed and marvelled at so many years later

[@RobertIsraelMusic]

@Nobilangelo Ceramalus-If he saw YT, he might say, "Uh, take me back to my 1850s anonymity!" :-)

[@Noobmaster-kz2ds]

This was recorded when bayonets were still a primary weopon of war, pretty crazy

[@ergodana3433]

i hope they will be again. people might think twice with the thought of blood on cold steel instead of a drone strike from 200 miles away from any chance of danger. cowards

[@thomasforgue3453]

@@ergodana3433 You think major nations will stop sending in troops just because they'd have to get their hands dirtier? You're crazy. At least in modern times one side doesn't have casualties instead of both sides having thousands of their men killed, maimed, or wounded

[@mywifesboyfriend5741]

Lol People want to fight with swords and shields again. Those days are long gone!

[@MexBaker]

@Неороманист nothing happened

[@scipioafricanus2212]

@@ergodana3433 if you think that will stop people going to war then you should check out this dude named Napoleon

[@jeroenritmeester73]

I particularly love how photographs and even video existed before audio recording, even though nowadays video is generally seen as far more complex and audio is often neglected. I guess it makes sense that video existed first since it conveys more information than sound alone.

[@RS3DArchive]

The real difference is TIME. A photograph captures light to create an image, but it only represents a frozen image, which does not capture actual time. Sound recording is only possible when the physics of time are captured as well. Scott's greatest contribution to physics is the fact that he was the first human to record an actual representation of time itself, (435 hz tone). Motion picture film did not achieve this until 1895.

[@-_.H._-]

I do feel sorry for Scott for being the first to create an audio recording, and then to remain unrecognised for his invention until many decades later. It’s really eerie as well…

[@readytowatch4350]

i don't know how these old recordings are so eerie but so comforting for some reason

[@raisa_cherry33]

Same my heart jumps!

[@shaynemhopkins]

kzbin.info2hRg0baS4Kk?feature=share

[@KevinContreras2013]

It’s maybe comforting because the people in history are just like us and this is audible proof of it. I find it comforting too

[@2401blue]

Really poor quality can have that eerie effect, being a slightly corrupted doppelganger of something extant. But it's also innocent in intent, and it's nice to know that everything written or talked about happened at some point and you are part of a long, long lineage.

[@cronchybo]

I think they're so eerie because of the distortion.

[@thankunext1625]

this is one of the most thought-provoking videos I've ever seen/heard. For some reason, hearing the sounds makes the era seem more real and not just a sort of fairytale pseudo-reality that you know in your mind HAPPENED but doesn't feel like it happened. Idk maybe that's just me. It would be so interesting to hear sounds from thousands of years ago as well. Maybe there's ancient egyptian "recordings" or inscriptions from a device meant to mimick audio patterns that we could discover someday and attempt to process.

[@RS3DArchive]

We probably will never find that, but the Egyptians were masters of acoustics. The Great Pyramid, and many other spaces were acoustically designed to give the feeling of immortality in sacred edifices. Where the hearts of the dead would speak for eternity.

[@Datboyjoc]

Look up jack Johnson voice. He was born in the 1800s but it’s only two videos of him talking on KZbin. It makes you think fr like damn life isn’t forever

[@ronmacneil3256]

no doupt your onto or close to some stuff we are a bout to disclose :)

[@RS3DArchive]

@@edwardspencer9397 No need to Google it. You are correct.

[@dekabmyco]

U had me in the first half ngl

[@bigbeef2654]

Hearing old recordings like this is very emotional. It is a difficult to describe. It makes one consider their place in this world and their own mortality. It throws your own mortality in your face and realize you are just a small part of a very long story.

[@ConcertGrande]

I met the great-great-grandson of Edouard-Leon Scott de Martinville while he was doing his scientific studies in the class where my neighbor, a professor of Physics, Chemistry, taught in a prestigious establishment in Paris. great document. thank you from Brittany

[@MikinessAnalog]

Remember, the first audio recorders needed no batteries. This is why I think vinyl should be treated with the same respect and care as nitro based film. We need no electricity to play back these mediums. In a pinch, during some apocalypse, you could still have entertainment or information.

[@windsofmarchjourneyperrytr2823]

Only I don't think there were 33rpm formats this far back. Only 78s at first I believe.

[@MikinessAnalog]

@@windsofmarchjourneyperrytr2823 Formats at this point in the 21st century are meaningless. I made a record lathe (recorder) that can produce a variety of formats on plastics (polyvinylcarbonate / same as CDs/ DVDs & Blurays)

[@upstreamtoast3512]

Wow very nice

[@worldcomicsreview354]

@@windsofmarchjourneyperrytr2823 78 rpm shellac records can be played without electricity, I have two clockwork players. Not sure there's any non-electric vinyl players, though it might be possible. Or you could make a clockwork one that also produces the electricity as it turns the record. Probably wouldn't be very loud, though.

[@nemrody7828]

@@worldcomicsreview354 non electric vinyl players? just take any player made before the 1950s. sure, quality is not top notch, but it is better than nothing

[@Dagot1948]

The 19th century was such an exciting and innovative time. By then, mankind no longer stumbled onto inventions. People began using scientific methods to purposely create new media, new machines, and even new ideas. It's no coincidence this spirit of invention brought about profound changes in human lives, some for good, and some for evil. And, as many have already said here, it is both eerie and inspiring to see and hear people so far removed from us in time. Many thanks for this excellent presentation!

[@brentfisher902]

Less wishing, more doing, that's the power of The One True Church... Science.

[@SStupendous]

@@brentfisher902 Aye!

[@miszkurka2000]

Inventions have always been there but on a different level. In 1,000 years, our current inventions will be comparable to a nail from 2,000 years ago. However, without all these previous discoveries, most of today's discoveries and those from the distant future would not exist.

[@mimiko8577]

it's sad to see that even with this revolutionary invention people do not even care for his discovery of sound recording, its sad that even people back then treat genius people as freaks, weirdo and bullies them.

[@MrMedictom]

Sadly, a lot of people today judge early inventions in comparison to what exists today. They don't seem to realize that modern technology only exists because of these 'old' and 'useless' artifacts. Similarly, most people in the 19th century had no use for frivolous gadgets that, in their minds, had no tangible effect on everyday life. To them, if you wanted to record something for posterity, you wrote it down or maybe took a photograph (If you were lucky enough to manage it). It's a shame so few took early sound recordings seriously. Imagine if we today could hear a recording of Abraham Lincoln delivering the Gettysburg Address!

[@houston3987]

I appreciate the impact and passion that went into the “first recorded voice”. Unfortunately, that doesn’t make it any less creepy.

[@kalakakakzk3180]

Opinion

[@orbitingsentientsatellite4361]

Theory

[@SPIDER-BEAVER]

Truth

[@fortheloveofnoise9298]

Trivago

[@notreallykeven86]

timeline

[@someasparagus]

Note: Don’t watch this at two in the morning like I just did. Yeah it’s so amazingly awesome, but it’s still spooky hearing voices coming from people that died over a hundred years ago.

[@KirbyFan9000]

I watched it at one in the morning. I'm perfectly fine for now.

[@r.jclark4641]

It's not creepy at all. Besides, EVERYONE dies. You want people replying to your comment years later, saying something like "it's so scary that this guy is dead!!!!"

[@okman7504]

@@r.jclark4641 It is eerie, you’re not normal.

[@r.jclark4641]

@@okman7504 Death is inevitable. Get over it

[@pianosbloxworld4460]

@@r.jclark4641 it’a amazing, but not eerie, yeah

[@011mrq7]

Hauntingly beautiful. Like a human voice reaching through time and space.

[@bobbrock4221]

So when Scott recorded this there were people alive from the Revolutionary War.

[@marmar92828]

Here I am in 2021 with all our amazing technology, listening to barely understandable audio recordings from the mid-1800s. And thinking how incredibly cool it is.

[@supersmilyface1]

Perspective on technology is pretty weird. Something new comes out, and we don't bat an eye, but then we find out about the very first versions of technology we have now days and think it's awesome (because it is). Simple, yet complex.

[@Random19194]

Wdym "and thinking how incredibly cool it is" ? Im pretty sure we all feel this way from shit that is 150+ years old. What would be even better is if Abraham Lincoln's voice was recorded before he died but unfortunately theres no recordings of his voice ever found

[@SStupendous]

@@Random19194 If he hadn't been assassinated it's even possible we could've had audio and video of him.

[@d3lta1g]

Me trying to sleep : The fly in my room : 3:30

[@jimjimsauce]

disregarding that stuff can be recorded and replayed completely electronically, i think it’s cool that him spinning the thing to record his voice is kind of like a CD player a bit! or a record or too

[@gabrieljohnson5077]

5:12 sounds like call center hold music 😂💀

[@AQuestioner]

3:50 If Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville was recognized for his revolutionary invention, we would have had Abraham Lincoln's recordings! What a shame. 2020-10-24

[@xiphactinusaudax1045]

what's with the date at the end there?

[@AQuestioner]

@@xiphactinusaudax1045 It's just the international date when I posted the comment. Since KZbin doesn't record the date, I might need it for future reference. 2021-03-01

[@xiphactinusaudax1045]

@@AQuestioner ok

[@MPounnds]

@@AQuestioner why would you need it?

[@Linnnaeus]

@@AQuestioner why

[@TryAgainFPV]

Ahh yes... the first SoundCloud rapper

[@chilliecheesecake]

@@florjanbrudar692 You just have fragile sensibilities, dont you?

[@gatway2376]

@@florjanbrudar692 you really need to get out more..... sensitive human.

[@universecreator988]

​@@florjanbrudar692 This isn't twitter, young one.

[@viejaspeliculasfilipinas3621]

@@florjanbrudar692 you just like getting pissed off, are you?

[@JustJaidenism]

@@florjanbrudar692 bruh moment

[@domagojcapko4152]

Everything we have today wouldn't be possible without this, respect for genious

[@TheStockwell]

No offense intended, but the Scott de Martinville phonautographs had no effect or influence on anything. Their significance wasn't known until relatively recently, after 2008.

[@zachatck64]

@@TheStockwell Sure it didn't back then, but now 162 years later where we can listen to this as much as we want in quality they couldn't think of, it's important since we now know the first EVER audio recording, and it wasn't even supposed to be heard by us. It's important to see how far technology has gone in so little time.

[@SStupendous]

@@TheStockwell To say they had "no effect or influence on ANYTHING" is a bit too much, certainly not true.

[@FlareSnare]

THank you so much for leaving the text on screen with just enough time to read, almost perfect. Thanks for not expecting us to pause.

[@R_JT69]

Yeah, they usually appear then F*ck off instantly.

[@joey22306]

The only voice out of all humanity at the time, we can hear today. Mind blown

[@thenewbgamer6416]

Imagine dying thinking you made the first recording, and God tells you: There's a french guy that made a recording 1860s

[@MarshallRedmon01]

It sounds like as if the past was trying to communicate to us in the future

[@RobertIsraelMusic]

Thank you very much for your video.

[@serbanesku]

They were teaching flies to sing back in 1859

[@RS3DArchive]

And in French, too.

[@w0210230]

Retitled: Charlie Brown's teacher - The Origin

[@bobbyfrancis8957]

How did Charles Schulz know?

[@ilovejonathandavis1998]

XD

[@robertortiz-wilson1588]

Thank you for putting this together!

[@youtoobe169]

This is a super cool and interesting video. Thanks for putting this together!

[@UriahD85]

4:54 me being put on hold in shit reception

[@buiuh1260]

thanks... made it 5% less scary but Im still in shock

[@shaynemhopkins]

kzbin.info2hRg0baS4Kk?feature=share

[@opposedscroll7596]

​@@buiuh1260 how is it scary

[@horrortackleharry]

Can't wait till Spotify release this in Hi-Res.....

[@florjanbrudar692]

....

[@heisenberg7945]

🤡

[@BONZOICK]

@@heisenberg7945 💀

[@AndrewKozley]

This is what KZbin was created for. I’m gladly watched it from the beginning until the end and I’m so proud that have an ability to hear with my own ears such an amazing piece of history!

[@InsideoutJoy]

As eerie as Scott’s recordings are he deserve more respect

[@TheCutePyro]

Is this what wikipedia means with their uncited claim of "Several phonautograms recorded before 1861 were successfully played as sound in 2008 by optically scanning them and using a computer to process the scans into digital audio files."?

[@RS3DArchive]

Yes, it is.

[@reecenewton3097]

@@RS3DArchive the phonautograms are similar to optical sound-on-film which was developed in the 1920's, and thus scannable with a light source and photocell.

[@schefre35]

@@reecenewton3097 Actually it was not that simple. Scott’s recordings contained a line, corresponding to the position of the vibrating stylus. Scientists had to virtually retrace the path of the stylus to capture the sound. For optical film, it was necessary to record sound with a microphone and a kind of light bulb. Together, they recorded sound as variations in light intensity, which, as you said, could easily be converted back into sound with a photo cell.

[@gpdude22]

Play it backwards and you can clearly hear "I am the Eggman".

[@MFPhoto1]

I heard, "I buried Paul."

[@upstreamtoast3512]

@@MFPhoto1 “I bang Paul”

[@oliverbrownlow5615]

Goo goo g'joob

[@FeverDreamTheOneAndOnly]

I AM THE WALRUS

[@mobythelion3882]

hmmm

[@katomiccomics202]

Listening to these recording without context sounds really really unsettling.

[@cak813]

This is fascinating. Thanks so much.

[@haydenblack5648]

5:20 that’s how video sounded on flip phones lmao

[@purpleku7768]

If only Lincoln would have been recorded............🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔😍

[@RS3DArchive]

There were rumors that he had at Gettysburg, but, alas, he did not. There is no phonatograph in the surviving photo, and it could not have been close enough anyway.

[@PotterPossum1989]

I'm sure it would have gone off with a bang

[@julianajordan2660]

@@PotterPossum1989 D a m n

[@dalblack8712]

@@PotterPossum1989 Too soon

[@badlydrawncars6460]

You'd be severely disappointed. He had kind of a weird voice.

[@nithinnithin3605]

3:20 like a mosquito in your ear

[@ashtonhashbrown6155]

7:06 I can hear them laughing knowing they made it in the history books, "The rest is history."

[@Gallica_XIV]

« Au clair de la Lune, mon ami Pierrot » As a frenchman, I felt sad when I heard him say this for some reason

[@marcusblackwell2372]

What does that translate to in English?

[@Tonyx.yt.]

@@marcusblackwell2372 at the Moon light, my friend Pierrot

[@marcusblackwell2372]

@@Tonyx.yt. thanks

[@Reggie-The-Dog]

So you make the mustard?

[@rainbowruler6453]

Perhaps because it sounds eerie and lonely, it also assesses how this brilliant man died without recognition.

[@tommccudden6809]

5:03 The simpsons theme??

[@kafftum1413]

Yo wtf you're right

[@raisa_cherry33]

Omg yeah

[@reneegoocey164]

GREAT SCOTT Marty took my time machine again and showed Edison the Simpsons this could cause the spacetime continue to overlap and destroy the entire universe. :/

[@EllaCBWalkersSpokeswoman]

Incredible it's so fascinating to hear the 1850s in November 2021

[@fernandajameus777]

Abril 2023

[@rolandmine6693]

163 years from now we might be looking back at todays technology as we do of the first advanced sounds and technology

[@sesboks]

On the one hand this is very interesting. On the other, I'm glad I'm not listening to this late at night.

[@fwandrez]

@@Account-jn7xu it's 12:56 am on a school night

[@LucyMusic1999]

It is 4:31 right now

[@mac_6705]

i wish i saw this comment before i started watching this at 12 am

[@deansbian5607]

why?

[@DonutMaster110]

This might give me nightmares

[@RS3DArchive]

You might like our next one even more. We are going to visit 1888 to be serenaded by 4000 long-dead souls singing Handel. Spooky.

[@louiscouperin3731]

Restoration Archive oof

[@RS3DArchive]

@David Jansen Hello, David. Nice to have you here.

[@VilleAbr]

@@RS3DArchive Hmm David

[@thechannelofeverything2615]

@@RS3DArchive what happened to thomas edison?

[@janmcguire5268]

That is amazing! Thanks for sharing this bit of history!

[@carljuztine3328]

i am honored to watch this video, this is the kind of video that historians of the future will hail as one of the most important videos in KZbin. fascinating

[@Freddy-wq9hz]

It's so weird to think that we could've theoretically heard what Lincoln sounded like

[@PilotGun]

i really respect this. this is like the beginning of the telephone, CD's, Airplane's black box, televisions, radios and also what is intresting why people making this is because they can make contact each other and you can make like an announcements.

[@RS3DArchive]

You have a very good grasp of this history. Scott's original concept is still with us today; every time we use voice mail, we are using his original invention concept, as well as Edison's.

[@billbombshiggy9254]

I don't know why the voice from 1860 is so spooky. It really is. it shouldn't be.

[@orionsuniversepart2932]

That’s because we are hearing a distant voice of a man who is no longer here.

[@billbombshiggy9254]

@@orionsuniversepart2932 Ronald Reagan Is no longer here and I don't get spooked hearing his voice.

[@terry2405]

This is incredible! Truly fascinating to hear a recording from so long ago. I probably shouldn't have listened to it in the dark, before trying to sleep though 😕

[@WoeFC]

Best album of all time 🔥

[@oldthug7624]

Me trying to clutch a 1v4 My teammates: 3:08

[@FelixLarios1234]

🤣🤣🤣

[@elanrg]

Tf is that pfp

[@Wolfganger]

@@elanrgikr 😂

[@thelemonvr8747]

The humming was the song au claire de la lune. me big brain

[@thelemonvr8747]

edit:i didnt know u actually put the name of the song at the end of the humming recording on god i just heard the song and it sounded like au claire de la lune

[@jeanettecook1088]

When Edison was working on making the first incandescent bulb that would last, he tried about 699 times and all failed. When someone criticized him, saying, "You've failed,"..."No," he replied, "I've found 699 that don't work." He found what he wanted in the next few tries.

[@gaymermoment]

He was still a liar, a fraud and a thief

[@higueraft571]

@@gaymermoment Alrighty.... but did he actually DEVELOP the actual working models? It's one thing to swipe and claim a patent, it's another to understand, and work out the problems on it. And make it a reality. Not to mention... most "inventors" stole from others, either in concept, design, or method.

[@higueraft571]

@@gaymermoment And for reference, Edison most DEFINITELY got the credit for a good reason. You could actually listen to a playback. Scott's was simply *there* for 150 years. Recorded but unplayable.

[@SStupendous]

Hiram Maxim disliked this comment

[@ummmhelp]

Imagine being the first person to have their voice recorded

[@marcarturi2137]

...simultaneously across town Nikola Tesla is microwaving popcorn!

[@atriox7221]

And doing anything Edison tried to do but better

[@asmodeus1274]

@@atriox7221 Edison either stole or had someone else come up with most of his inventions. He used to be someone I looked up to during my youth until I learned the truth.

[@deansbian5607]

lmao

[@__taka__8200]

just imagine those people creating their first ever recordings and jumping around in Happiness that they have created the best Communication/Sounds to the entire world and im guessing there watching down there creation being used every day

[@margaritadanova4764]

Just imagine how many voices of great singers and speeches by outstanding actors and politicians have been lost over centuries simply because the humanity couldn't record sound.

[@RHC_NYC]

I prefer the earlier stuff before they went commercial.

[@davidroosa4561]

i saw them before they added ringo

[@shadowsnumberonefann]

I should show this to my history teacher and get her to play it to scare everyonr

[@EvilGeniusRANIK]

How amazing it is to have your work be discovered and even enhanced 150 years from the day you yourself started it. You have achieved your well deserved immortal recognition Scott.

[@edidk7298]

He seemed like a very kind man, I wish people didn’t watch this for the purpose of scaring themselves. The man himself was never scary- Oh god I’m terrified

[@RS3DArchive]

😂

[@MrPomegranX]

*Pixels start* “Soulja boy right in this”

[@LanceCrowMusic]

No one: That one kid in the lobby with a shit mic: 2:11

[@alkha4711]

Lmao

[@dolliegray666]

Lol

[@toxicainyourarea]

HAJAHAGJVGBJ

[@d3fury312]

It sounds like owl for me 💀

[@DiscoverHudsonValley]

This is soooooo cool!!! Love your channel too and I look forward to going through your other videos. You just got a new subscriber. Cheers!

[@RS3DArchive]

Thanks for your comment.

[@neilbain8736]

It was far sighted to have a tuning fork pitch as a time reference. Scott was clearly perspicacious. Maybe he knew his work was unplayable at the time. Perhaps his dream was that technology would evolve and he knew that he was part of it. But maybe he also wanted a visual reference on his work as the waveforms were meant to be seen. The study of sound had many aspects then as it does now, but then they were nascent. There were no oscilloscopes as we think of them, and the same passes to whatever applied to the term 'microphone' back then.

[@glenesis]

On the Edison 1878 foil - the coronet sound, to my ear, seems like a vocal impersonation of a coronet.

[@craigmitchell4407]

That is an interesting observation. You may be right.