Music Technology

This Very Short Introduction takes an expansive and inclusive approach meant to broaden and challenge traditional views of music and technology. In its most common use, "music technology" tends to evoke images of twentieth and twenty-first century electronic devices: synthesizers, recording equipment, music notation software, and the like. This volume, however, treats all tools used to create, store, reproduce, and transmit music—new or old, electronic or not—as technologies worthy of investigation.

Thomas Dolby's hit songs "She Blinded Me with Science" and "Hyperactive!" catapulted him to international fame in the early '80s. A pioneer of New Wave and Electronica, Thomas combined a love for invention with a passion for music, and the result was a new sound that defined an era of revolutionary music. But as record company politics overshadow the joy of performing, Thomas finds a surprising second act.

Industrial music sounds like the end of something—machines still humming after the workers have left, surveillance systems running on empty, the mechanical repetition of labor stripped of its human context. Cold, abrasive, and relentlessly unsentimental, it holds a mirror up to systems of control and asks: What if we made you listen to this? From the first electric instruments in 1748 to Skinny Puppy's torture at Guantanamo Bay, from Dada's confrontational performances to Death Grips' algorithmic chaos, industrial music has spent two and a half centuries refusing to sound human. It didn't...

Featuring original music by Kid Cudi. A raw, fearless memoir from the Grammy Award–winning artist, actor, and designer Kid Cudi about a kid from Cleveland who found purpose in the darkness and became a guiding light for a generation. Cudi: The Memoir is Scott Mescudi’s most personal work yet...

“A gripping thriller that pulls back the curtain on the secret world of tech billionaires.”—Time (100 Must-Read Books of 2025) “A stone-cold banger of a novel—a twisty journey through Silicon Valley’s dark side, wrapped in a stunning mystery package with some wild surprises along the...

This is the complete history of the synthesizer—from electromagnetic experiments in the 1870s to the software and hardware you use today. You'll discover how these instruments evolved from room-sized laboratory equipment to portable analog classics to digital dominance to the software revolution to the analog revival happening right now. Every major instrument, every breakthrough, every paradigm shift that shaped how electronic music gets made. Written by someone who has spent 40 years actually using synthesizers—not interviewing people or researching archives, but patching cables, ...

In AND WE PUTTIN IT ON WAX, delve into an absorbing odyssey that charts the transformation of music through the ever-evolving platforms on which it's experienced. From the grooves of vinyl records to the ephemeral world of streaming, this book reveals how shifts in technology don't merely change how we listen, but alter the very essence of the music itself. Through insights frommusicians, producers, and industry insiders across diverse genres, we explore how artistic choices are influenced by medium, and how these choices reverberate through culture. Immerse yourself in a rich narrative ...

Discover the brilliant life of Hedy Lamarr. This talented film actress became an influential scientist with her invention of a secret radio system in the early 1940s, a building block of today’s wireless communications.

In recent years, narratives about the music industry tend to hew to a common theme: it was humming along for decades until the Internet and Napster came along and disrupted it. Key Changes shows that this view is incorrect: the industry was actually shaken up not once in the 1990s, but ten times over more than 100 years.

When an army of giant robot AIs threatens to devastate Earth, a virtuoso pianist becomes humanity's last hope in this bold, lightning-paced, technicolor space opera series from the author of A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe. Jazz pianist Gus Kitko expected to spend his final moments on...

When the author stumbled across a derelict vinyl record factory in Harare, Zimbabwe, he didn’t see rust and ruin . He saw potential. A crazy kind of potential. The kind that keeps you awake at night wondering, What if I could make this thing spin again? What began as a wild idea soon turned into a global escapade involving eccentric engineers, a determined Polish businessman, exploding oil pipes, lost tempers, and countless cups of lukewarm tea. From the dust and disarray of Africa to the immaculate order of a Polish factory floor, Gordon and his unlikely partners set out to do the ...

This audiobook tells the story of how Philo Farnsworth came up with the idea for electronic television at age 14, and later developed his idea into the technology for television that is still used today.

Richie and Mike provide direct practical guidance on the skills and knowledge necessary for jazz to be passed on and performed well. The conversational tone of the book makes for entertaining and worthwhile listening. Those who have been teaching jazz for a long time will appreciate Richie's stories and his fearless opinions on jazz including how the teaching and learning of it are evolving (for good and for bad).

The definitive inside account of the file-sharing revolution that overthrew the music industry, All the Rave reveals the family betrayal, greed, and mismanagement that hijacked one the most fundamental innovations of the Internet era. Named one of the three best books of 2003 by Investigative Reporters and Editors Inc., All the Rave has been out of print until now and unavailable in most formats. Author and veteran technology journalist Joseph Menn also wrote 2010's Fatal System Error: The Hunt for the New Crime Lords who are Bringing Down the Internet.

Are you curious about the buzzwords Web3, Blockchain, and NFTs but unsure where to start? Look no further! This non-technical beginner’s guide demystifies today’s most talked-about cryptocurrency and token trends, empowering you to fully understand how digital ownership and decentralized identity are reshaping the internet. Inside this comprehensive book, you’ll discover: Web3 Essentials – Explore the evolution of the internet and see how Web3 unlocks user-owned data and community-driven platforms. Blockchain Basics – Learn how blockchains power cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and other ...

What happens when conservationists meet rhinos in trouble? They arrange to airlift them to safety! Follow National Geographic Explorers-in-Residence Dereck and Beverly Joubert as they move rhinos out of harm's way and meet a courageous little Hawaiian monk seal and a pair of Siberian tiger cubs fighting for survival.

Where can you find a dog on wheels and a fluffy chicken that work together at a veterinarian’s office? What about Mr. G the goat and Jellybean the donkey, two inseparable friends? Or dog and cheetah BFFs? Look no further! Together Forever! tells three heartwarming tales of unlikely animal friendships that prove love knows no species. These true stories will amaze, inspire, and make you say “Awww.”

Girella, just seventeen, is the youngest member of the Parrhesia family. She lives in the shadow of her brother, sister and her famous mother. Sheltered from the world around her, lonely and lacking in confidence, her solace is her radio and the sounds of alien music from the far side of the galaxy. But when her grandfather is murdered and her brother inherits the vast estates of Smorzando, everything changes. They move from the security and comfort of a world she knows to a rural backwater surrounded by hostile locals and a deadly threat lurking in the shadows. Against a backdrop of ...

Million Dollar Sound is the ultimate step-by-step guide for entrepreneurs, creators, and music lovers who want to turn AI-generated music into a full-time income or scalable digital empire—no studio, no label, no musical background required. Whether you’re a complete beginner or an experienced producer looking to modernize your workflow, this book shows you how to use AI tools like Suno, Boomy, and Soundraw to create high-quality music fast—and build real wealth from it.

Never be confused about online music marketing again. Updated for 2018, this audiobook features the second volume in the highly acclaimed Guerrilla Music Marketing Handbook.