How do you listen to your music? Stereo, CDs, ear buds, iPod, satellite, television as receiver? I jam, tap, and hum in time (well, not always in time) via all those methods. And I’d like to thank one man today for that privilege. Thomas Alva Edison first demonstrated the hand-cranked phonograph on this date in 1877. A mere 135 years later and we are surrounded by reproduced strains of music and voice that were all first cranked into possibility on that day.

Edison’s device was the first that was able to reproduce recorded sound. Other predecessors had only been able to record. And what good is that? (It’s like writing a book that you keep in drawer.) Using a cylinder covered in a tinfoil sheet, Edison’s phonograph scratched wavy lines into the sheet as the cylinder rotated. Thus, the cranking. The result was the magical release of sound. This didn’t just apply to music but also to spoken recordings. Here was the birth of the first audio book. As a music fan, I thank Mr. Edison. As a writer, I thank Mr. Edison. As a reader, I thank Mr. Edison. My genie characters thank him, too. Zipping through the atmosphere on waves of energy are something they can appreciate.

I constantly have a book on CD playing in the car as I drive. And I realize that even that technology is becoming antiquated. CDs will soon go the way of the phonograph. I have pieces of furniture anchored to my wall that are dedicated to storing these vehicles of sound. All they do now is collect dust. Satellite and iPod downloads are fast capturing and storing sound on the cloud. The good thing about this cloud is that it doesn’t take up any space on my wall. I don’t have to dust! Another chore discarded. If that’s not magic, I don’t know what is.

Meanwhile, I have transitioned to more modern methods of sound reproduction. An effort that was instigated by my niece asking, “What’s a CD.” Pandora, Spotify, and Sirius XM are all services that have taken Edison’s original concept and sent it flying into the ether. Eighty years after the phonograph, Max Mathews of Bell Telephone Laboratories developed a process to digitally record sound via computer. I think Edison would be impressed by what we’ve done with his invention.

Sound has always been waves of energy, but our scientific pioneers have found ways to lasso and pen those waves. There are bound to be improvements in the near future. Keep listening.

Best Wishes,

Kellyann Zuzulo

Pick up the digital book The Christmas Bottle today.

At 75 cents, it’s cheaper than a light bulb and more entertaining.