Race, sex, and gender.

An incredible variety of antique record players is documented, including those with external-horns as well as internal-horn devices, collectively known as "talking machines." The authoritative text and up-to-date value guide complement hundreds of photos to provide in this one volume a veritable library on the subject.

This cross-disciplinary volume illuminates the history of early phonography from a transnational perspective, recovering the myriad sites, knowledge practices, identities and discourses which dynamically shaped early recording cultures. With case studies from China, Australia, the United States, Latin America, Russia, Sweden, Germany, Spain, Portugal, France, and Italy, Phonographic Encounters explores moments of interaction and encounter, as well as tensions, between local and global understandings of recording technologies. Drawing on an array of archival sources often previously unavailable in English, it moves beyond western-centric narratives of early phonography and beyond the strict confines of the recording industry. Contributions from media history, musicology, popular music studies, cultural studies, area studies and the history of science and technology make this book a key and innovative resource for understanding early phonography against the backdrop of colonial and global power relations.

Antique phonographs enjoyed a vigorous commercial existence 100 years ago, and have come to symbolize the romance and elegance of days gone by. To present the fascinating accessories, horns, storage cabinets, advertising and ephemera which surrounded the early years of recorded sound, the authors display here over 500 color photos which illustrate nearly 700 items.

Out of the authors' latest explorations, this gorgeous new book has come to life---illustrating entirely different talking machines from those in their previous books. Follow the progress of the acoustic talking machine from its crude beginnings in the 1870s to its most splendid and sophisticated heights in the early 20th century. An unparalleled archive of rare, fascinating, and previously undocumented objects has been assembled. The story behind the beautiful, bright machinery is told through clear and insightful descriptions, and many previously unpublished facts are revealed.