Otto von Bismarck voice
recording released
Related Stories
A wax cylinder recording of German statesman Otto von Bismarck has been
released, the first time his voice has been heard for more than 100 years.
The recording was made in 1889 by a technician working for the inventor
of the phonograph, Thomas Edison.
It has now been restored using digital technology by the Thomas Edison National Historical Park museum.
The Otto Von Bismarck Foundation in Germany has called the discovery
"sensational".
The Foundation had believed the recordings to be lost.
The cylinder was among 17 found in 1957 in an unlabelled box at Edison's
laboratory in the US state of New Jersey.
Bismarck is barely audible on the recordings but can be heard reciting
extracts of poetry, songs, and giving words of advice to his son.
Intriguingly, at one point he also breaks into the first lines of the
French national anthem, La Marseillaise.
The cylinders have also yielded songs and rhapsodies by German and
Hungarian musicians, including what is thought to be the first ever recording
of a work by Polish composer Frederyk Chopin.
No comments:
Post a Comment