Description :

In democracy of sound alex sayf cummings uncovers the little known history of music piracy and its sweeping effects on the definition of copyright in the united states when copyright emerged only visual material such as books and maps were thought to deserve protection even musical compositions were not included until 1831. Democracy of sound opens with a poignant personal anecdote alex sayf cummings on the very first page recounts how his mother a single parent on a tight budget attempted to acquire volumes of an encyclopedia series for his childhood home making it ultimately only to the letter d p. It was a time when music fans copied and traded recordings without permission an outraged music industry pushed congress to pass anti piracy legislation yes that time is now it was also the era of napster in the 1990s of cassette tapes in the 1970s of reel to reel tapes in the 1950s even the phonograph epoch of the 1930s piracy it turns out is as old as recorded music itself. Americans of the turn of the century broadly associated sound recording with communication rather than with music or entertainment alone promoters of cylinders and discs emphasized the accuracy . Democracy of sound book read 13 reviews from the worlds largest community for readers it was a time when music fans copied and traded recordings witho