De Luxe Phonograph Needles
The Compo Company, ca. 1920’s
Tin container, steel needles
3.2 x 4.3 x 1.1 cm
Purchased from Crawford Farm’s Auction, 2010
Personal collection
Phonographs were first introduced in 1877, by Thomas Edison. The initial phonograph was built inside a New Jersey laboratory, it was derived from Edison’s interest in telephony and telegraphy. The phonograph would serve as the first device that was able to both record and reproduce sound. The mechanical mechanism would record sound vibrations by impressing specific grooves onto a circulating cylinder or disc. The needles of these devices would become particularly important as they would trace over these incised grooves, allowing for sound to be played back to the viewer. The phonograph was originally marketed in 1888 as a business communications device. The intent was that this machine would become an innovative dictation machine, however, this ultimately failed. By the mid-1890’s the demand to sell phonograph’s coincided with the upsurge in the prerecorded music industry, simply the component of the needle in the phonograph became valued for its ability to play previously recorded songs.
The placement of phonographs in the public sphere was a way for many individuals to hear a prerecorded sound. The phonograph would gather individuals together to hear intellectual discussion and music, highlighting Benedict Anderson’s concept of the “imagined community”. Listeners gathered to hear prerecorded sound and considered themselves to be modernists, where other individuals lacked this potential due to the records inability to circulate well and its availability. Currently phonographs, phonograph needles, and records all have the ability to be dispersed and be well-known from online media formats that can provide contextual, visual, and audio information to almost all individuals. In 2010, these specific phonograph needles would become a part of my father’s personal record collection, which he would pass down to me in 2017. These needles are particularly important to me as they represent the connection my father and I have over classical music and our interest in the music industry.
Phonograph needles allowed for large groups of individuals to come together in public parlours to hear intellectual and entertainment recordings. Unfortunately, our current situation with the COVID-19 pandemic prohibits such large social gatherings, ultimately changing how we are able to view historic artifacts such as phonograph needles. As we become forced into a digital life, it essentially reduces the tactile and communicative experience one would have gained from viewing phonograph needles in person with other individuals. We still value phonograph needles for their historic musical past, however in times of global crisis especially when we are socially isolated in our homes and are surrounded by everyday items we come to value essential objects more. Viewing phonograph needles online can currently uplift our spirits and remind us of a time when we are all healthy and able to come together to share each other’s company.
Ashley Downhill