October 18, 2005 Mark Katz to Discuss How Technology Has Changed Music on Nov. 9

Press Contact: Donna Urschel (202) 707-1639
Public Contact: Robert Saladini (202) 707-2692

Mark Katz, a professor at the Peabody Conservatory of Music at The Johns Hopkins University, will discuss his book, “Capturing Sound: How Technology Has Changed Music,” at the Library of Congress at noon on Wednesday, Nov. 9, in room 119 of the Thomas Jefferson Building, 10 First St. S.E., Washington, D.C.

The event, which is sponsored by the Library’s John W. Kluge Center, the Music Division and the Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division, is free and open to the public; no reservations are required.

According to Katz, who teaches in the Department of Musicology at the Peabody, there is more to sound recording than just recording sound. Not just a tool for the preservation of music, the technology is a catalyst for change. In “Capturing Sound,” Katz writes a wide-ranging, informative and entertaining history of recording's profound impact on the musical life of the past century, from Edison to the Internet.

In his book talk, Katz will discuss a series of case studies to illustrate how recording technology has encouraged new ways of listening to music, led performers to change their practices and allowed entirely new musical genres to come into existence. Using tracks from the works of Chopin to Public Enemy, Katz will illustrate his point when he discusses music as varied as King Oliver’s “Dippermouth Blues,” a Jascha Heifetz recording of a Hungarian Dance by Brahms, and Fatboy Slim's “Praise You.”

In addition to “Capturing Sound,” Katz has written “The Violin: A Research and Information Guide,” to be published soon. He is also working on a book-length study of race and technology in hip-hop turntablism, which is the art of using a phonograph turntable to create and manipulate music and sounds.

The Library’s Music Division holds collections of nearly 8 million items, including the classified music and book collections, music and literary manuscripts, microforms, and copyright deposits. For more information about the collections and programs of the Music Division visit the Web at www.loc.gov/rr/perform.

The Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound Division holds the largest and most comprehensive collections of American and foreign-produced films, television broadcasts, sound recordings and radio broadcasts in the world. The Library’s audiovisual collections include more than 3.7 million items and are growing at an average rate of 120,000 items annually. The Library also is responsible for the preservation of more than half of America’s audiovisual heritage. For more information on the division, visit www.loc.gov/rr/record.

Through a generous endowment from John W. Kluge, the Library of Congress established the Kluge Center in 2000 to bring together the world’s best thinkers to stimulate and energize scholarly discussion, distill wisdom from the Library’s rich resources and interact with policymakers in Washington. For more information about any of the fellowships, grants and programs offered by the John W. Kluge Center, visit www.loc.gov/kluge.

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PR 05-225
2005-10-18
ISSN 0731-3527