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The earliest known disc object to be thrown around was the chakram, which was used as a weapon in ancient India. In later times, flying discs were used for recreational purposes. The clay target used in trapshooting, almost identical to a flying disc in shape, was designed in the 19th century. The modern day era of flying discs began with the concept of designing and selling a commercially-produced flying disc.

The Frisbie Pie Company (1871–1958) of Bridgeport, Connecticut, made pies that were sold to many New England colleges. Hungry college students soon discovered that the empty pie tins could be tossed and caught, providing endless hours of sport. Many colleges have claimed to be the home of "he who was first to fling." Yale College has argued that in 1820, an undergraduate named Elihu Frisbie grabbed a passing collection tray from the chapel and flung it out into the campus, thereby becoming the true inventor of the Frisbee. That tale is dubious, as the "Frisbie's Pies" origin is well-documented. Walter Frederick Morrison claims that it was a popcorn can lid that he tossed with his girlfriend (and later wife) Lu at a 1937 Thanksgiving Day gathering in Los Angeles that inspired his interest in developing a commercially-produced flying disc. In 1946 he sketched out plans for a disc he called the Whirlo-Way, which, co-developed and financed by Warren Franscioni in 1948, became the very first commercially produced plastic flying disc, marketed under the name Pipco Flyin-Saucer. Morrison had just returned to the US after World War II, where he had been a prisoner in the infamous Stalag 13. His partnership with Franscioni, who was also a war veteran, ended in 1950, before their product had achieved any real success.

In 1955, Morrison produced a new plastic flying disc called the Pluto Platter, to cash in on the growing popularity of UFOs with the American public. The Pluto Platter became the design basis for later flying discs. In 1957, Wham-O began production of more discs (then still marketed as Pluto Platters). The next year, Morrison was awarded US Design Patent 183,626 for his flying disc.

Knerr, in search of a catchy new name to help increase sales, and hearing of the colloquial name "Frisbie", gave the disks the trademarkable brand name "Frisbee" (which is pronounced the same as "Frisbie") on June 17, 1957.Sales soared for the toy, which was marketed as a new sport. In 1964, the first "professional" model went on sale. Ed Hedrick was the sales manager at Wham-O who patented the company's design for the aerodynamically improved modern Frisbee (US Patent 3,359,678).

Labels: history

The piano first known as the pianoforte developed from the harpsichord around 1720, by Bartolomeo Cristofori of Padua, Italy. The instrument was already over a hundred years old by the time Beethoven was writing his last sonatas, around the time when it ousted the harpsichord as the standard keyboard instrument. The piano has had a central place in music since the middle of the eighteenth century. Around 1780, the upright piano was created by Johann Schmidt of Salzburg, Austria and later improved in 1802 by Thomas Loud of London whose upright piano had strings that ran diagonally.

Cristofori Piano
Harpsichord manufacturers went to great lengths to try to produce a mechanism that would give them the desired dynamic response. But it was Bartolomeo Cristofali (Cristofori), of Padua, keeper of instruments in the court of Prince Ferdinand de Medici of Florence, who actually solved the problem.

Piano Player
In 1881, an early patent for a piano player was issued to John McTammany, Jr., of Cambridge, Mass. John McTammany described his invention as a "mechanical musical instrument." It worked using narrow sheets of perforated flexible paper which triggered the notes. A later automatic piano player was the Angelus patented by Edward H. Leveaux of England on 27 February 1879, and described as an "apparatus for storing and transmitting motive power." John McTammany's invention was actually the earlier one invented (1876), however, the patents dates are in the opposite order due to filing procedures. On March 28, 1889, William Fleming received a patent for a player piano using electricity.

John McTammany
John McTammany, player piano pioneer, has been credited with the invention of the instrument, having patented several devices that were important to the development of automatic piano construction.

Labels: history, instrument, music, piano

In the beginning there was a bass. It was a Fender, probably a Precision, but it could have been a Jazz - nobody knows. Anyway, it was very old ... definitely pre-C.B.S. And God looked down upon it and saw that it was good. He saw that it was very good in fact, and couldn't be improved on at all (though men would later try.) And so He let it be and He created a man to play the bass.

And lo the man looked upon the bass, which was a beautiful 'sunburst' red, and he loved it. He played upon the open E string and the note rang through the earth and reverberated throughout the firmaments (thus reverb came to be.) And it was good. And God heard that it was good and He smiled at his handiwork. Then in the course of time, the man came to slap upon the bass. And lo it was funky. And God heard this funkiness and He said, "Go man, go." And it was good.

And more time passed, and, having little else to do, the man came to practice upon the bass. And lo, the man came to have upon him a great set of chops. And he did play faster and faster until the notes rippled like a breeze through the heavens. And God heard this sound which sounded something like the wind, which He had created earlier. It also sounded something like the movement of furniture, which He hadn't even created yet, and He was not so pleased. And He spoke to the man, saying "Don't do that!"

Now the man heard the voice of God, but he was so excited about his new ability that he slapped upon the bass a blizzard of funky notes. And the heavens shook with the sound, and the Angels ran about in confusion. (Some of the Angels started to dance, but that's another story.) And God heard this - how could He miss it - and lo He became Bugged. And He spoke to the man, and He said, "Listen man, if I wanted Jimi Hendrix I would have created the guitar. Stick to the bass parts."

And the man heard the voice of God, and he knew not to mess with it. But now he had upon him a passion for playing fast and high. The man took the frets off of the bass which God had created. And the man did slide his fingers upon the fretless fingerboard and play melodies high upon the neck. And, in his excitement, the man did forget the commandment of the Lord, and he played a frenzy of high melodies and blindingly fast licks. And the heavens rocked with the assault and the earth shook, rattled and rolled.

Now God's wrath was great. And His voice was thunder as He spoke to the man. And He said, "O.K. for you, pal. You have not heeded My word. Lo, I shall create a soprano saxophone and it shall play higher than you can even think of." "And from out of the chaos I shall bring forth the drums. And they shall play so many notes thine head shall ache, and I shall make you to always stand next to the drummer." "You think you're loud? I shall create a stack of Marshall guitar amps to make thine ears bleed. And I shall send down upon the earth other instruments, and lo, they shall all be able to play higher and faster than the bass."

"And for all the days of man, your curse shall be this; that all the other musicians shall look to you, the bass player, for the low notes. And if you play too high or fast all the other musicians shall say "Wow" but really they shall hate it. And they shall tell you you're ready for your solo career, and find other bass players for their bands. And for all your days if you want to play your fancy licks you shall have to sneak them in like a thief in the night." "And if you finally do get to play a solo, everyone shall leave the bandstand and go to the bar for a drink." And it was so.

Labels: Bass, history, instrument, music

Music and musical instruments are an extremely important part of human history. The use of rhythm and song has long been used to express meaning, and feeling and accompany rituals.

Music has been part of human life for as long as anyone can trace. Early civilizations of humans used music as a way to communicate and express feelings. Out of all of the musical instruments that we see in our society today and use on a regular basis, there is one instrument that stands out in musical history, the drum.

The history of drums is interesting and unique. When you examine this instrument historically, you will find that drums have had a place in almost all cultures around the globe. Variations of drums and drum sets occurred in many different cultures, the standard variety of a drum consisted simply of a hollowed out log or gourd with a piece of skin stretched taunt. Different sizes of gourds and logs created different sounds and beats.

The African Influence
In most African cultures, drums were very important in the use of rituals and religious ceremonies. The people of different African tribes relied on the use of drums to express themselves and when the slave trade began, the drums made the journey across the ocean as well.

African drums and drummers provided a unique sound that heavily influenced Western Rock and Roll music. Those same rhythms and beats still provide a strong influence in today’s sounds.

The Early Drum Set
When it was discovered that one player could play two or more drums at the same time, people started placing groups of drums together for one musician to play. These groups were comprised of an assimilation of drums of different cultures and from all around the globe. Cymbals and tom tom drums were brought in from China and the size was adjusted to allow for ease of play when played with drumsticks.

In the early 1930’s, musicians slowly discovered with the proper drum placement and a lot of practice, one musician could handle a set of drums, and an entire band of drum players was not required anymore. Thus, a basic kit evolved and took place.

In An Early Kit
The early drum kits were simple in their design, they typically consisted only of:

1) A bass and foot pedal
2) A snare drum
3) Tom Toms
4) A hi hat cymbal
5) One or two sets of hanging cymbals

The Evolution Of The Drum Set
In the 1930’s the drum set was heavily influenced by the sounds of the time, and the early forms of Rock and Roll music. The sounds had a strong basic beat backing them.

In the 1950’s as Rock and Roll music began to develop, the sounds became more complex and likewise, the drum sets became more evolved, with new additions added to them. Rockers began expanding the drum kits adding more cymbals and tom toms drums to them. In addition, as time went on, electronic drums were added to the drum kits as well. All of these additions allowed the musicians to expand their sounds and diversify their music.

Types Of Drum Kits
In the past, as drums evolved and drum kits developed, new companies were formed and products were fine-tuned and made better. The Ludwig Drum Company is known as one of the most influential and historical drum companies of our time.

The Ludwig drum company was started by a young man who enjoyed playing the drums. He could not find a bass pedal that would hold up to his intense drumming style. He shopped around everywhere and could not find an appropriate pedal, so he fashioned one out of wood. The pedal was superior to anything else on the market. His brother, felt that an even stronger pedal could be created out of a metal product, so they teamed up to create an even better bass pedal. Thus, the Ludwig Drum Company was born.

Ringo Starr, the famous drummer for The Beatles used a Ludwig drum set and was known for preferring the Ludwig drums. He is said to still own the original Ludwig drum set that he played with the Beatles.

There have been many other types of drum kits and company names that have played an important and influential role in the history of drums. Yamaha, Pearl, Tama and Gretsch are all famous brand names whose drums and drum kits have helped form the drum set, as we know it today.

The Future For Drums
What does the future hold for drum sets? No one can be sure. However, with the creation of more and more technology, we can be sure that the sounds will evolve even more. A combination of new sounds and traditional will always be found. And the limit for drum set creation will simply be the imagination of the musicians.

Labels: Drum, history, instrument, music

While the guitar may have gained the bulk of its popularity as a musical instrument during the modern era, guitar-like instruments have been in existence in numerous cultures throughout the world for more than five thousand years. With such an extensive history, it is virtually impossible to cover its entirety within the scope of this article. Instead, mentioning several significant developments within that lengthy history helps to paint a broad overview of the history of the guitar.

The word "guitar" was brought into English as an adaptation of the Spanish word "guitarra," which was, in turn, derived from the Greek "kithara." Tracing the roots of the word further back into linguistic history, it seems to have been a combination of the Indo-European stem "guit-," meaning music, and the root "-tar," meaning chord or string. The root "-tar" is actually common to a number of languages, and can also be found in the word "sitar," also a stringed musical instrument. Although the spelling and pronunciation differs between languages, these key elements are present in most words for "guitar" throughout history.

The earliest instruments that the modern eye and ear would recognize as a "normal" acoustic guitar date from about five hundred years ago, in the late Medieval or early Renaissance periods. Prior to this time, stringed instruments were in use throughout the world, but these early instruments are known primarily from visual depictions, not from the continued existence of music written for them. The majority of these depictions show simple stringed instruments, often lacking some of the parts that define a modern guitar. A number of these instruments have more in common with the lute than the guitar.

During the Renaissance, guitars were either four-course or five-course, meaning that they had four or five strings or sets of strings. In the case of those guitars with sets of strings, or courses, the pair of strings in a given course would generally be tuned to the same note or to two notes an octave apart. In this way, these Renaissance-era guitars were similar to a modern twelve string guitar, which has twelve strings placed in six courses, and each course is tuned similarly or in a
complimentary fashion. The sound produced by these four-course and five-course guitars would have been a richer sound than that of a modern six string guitar, because of the larger number of notes from the larger number of strings.

There is some uncertainty about the exact date of the earliest six string guitar. The best extant possibility is dated 1779, and was made by Gaetano Vinaccia. However, the authenticity of six string guitars alleged to have been made prior to 1790 is often suspect, as many fakes have been discovered dating to this era. The early nineteenth century is generally accepted as the time period during which six string guitars began taking on their modern shape and dimensions. Thus for nearly two hundred years, luthiers, or guitar makers, have been producing versions of the modern acoustic guitar.

The first electric guitar was not developed until the early twentieth century. George Beauchamp received the first patent for an electric guitar in 1936, and Beauchamp went on to co-found Rickenbacker, originally known as the Electro String Instrument Company, with Adolph Rickenbacher. The spelling of the company name differs from Rickenbacher's given surname to distance himself from his German ancestry, which was seen as suspect during the world wars.

Although Rickenbacker began producing electric guitars in the late 1930s, this brand received most of its fame in the 1960s, when John Lennon used a Rickenbacker guitar for the Beatlesdebut performance on the Ed Sullivan show in 1964. George Harrison later bought a Rickenbacker guitar of his own, and the company later gave him one of their earliest twelve string electric guitars. Paul McCartney also used a Rickenbacker bass guitar for recording. The Beatles continued to use Rickenbacker guitars throughout their career, and made the instruments highly popular among other musicians of the era.

The Fender Musical Instruments Company and the Gibson Guitar Corporation were two other early electric guitar pioneers, both developing models in the early 1950s. Fender began with the Telecaster in 1950 and 1951, and the Fender Stratocaster debuted in 1954. Gibson began selling the Gibson Les Paul, based partially on assistance from jazz musician and guitar innovator Les
Paul, in 1952. The majority of present day solid-body electric guitars are still based largely on these three early electric guitar designs.

Throughout the history of the guitar and related stringed instruments, an enormous number of individuals have made their mark on the way in which guitars were built, played, and perceived. Though some of these individuals are particularly well known, like the Beatles or Les Paul, the majority of these people are virtually invisible to most modern guitar fans. By looking at the entire history of the guitar, rather than just recent developments, largely confined to electric guitars, it is possible to see more of the contributions of earlier generations.

-SOURCE: guitarsland.com-

Labels: Guitar, history, instrument, music