The Grammys are an award show deemed bigger than mostly any ordinary award ceremony. This year’s show was electrifying and went far beyond past shows. The biggest night in music didn’t disappoint and showed off the power of music in many ways.

 

Our love for music leads us to look forward to the Grammy Awards each year. The music industry thrives, in part, as a result of technology and innovation as well as the vocal talents of the performers. 

 

The innovations behind the scenes began on  November 21st, 1877. That was the historic day when a familiar name, Thomas Edison “announced, the invention of the first device for recording and replaying sound – the ‘phonograph.’ […] it was a landmark invention that allowed for moments or periods in time to be captured in perpetuity. ” Original sounds and recordings arose when the foil, wrapped around a grooved cylinder, responded to soundwave vibrations. (Challoner, 406). Although rocky at first, Edison’s creation would ultimately lead to the engaging music we love today. 

 

The Grammy’s wouldn’t be the same without the microphone either.  Take a look back at how the microphone was invented. Developed as an improvement upon another new invention (the telephone) microphones and amplifiers gave musicians the ability to reach the whole audience with their music. Without the microphone, large concerts wouldn’t be possible.

 

When we think of music, we think of Rock & Roll! This genre owes a huge debt to another electronic, masterpiece - the electric guitar. “Amplifying” the sound from guitar strings was initially coined by Lloyd Loar in 1924. Working as an engineer at Gibson, Loar discovered that magnetic pickup under the strings created an electric signal that could be picked up by wire coil. It wasn’t until a musician specializing in Hawaiian music used the magnetic pickup to create a larger sound, that the music world would begin its electrifying revolution.

 

The Grammys bring all of these electronic advancements: music, sound, lighting, and technology together on one stage; the technology often driven by the components that Keystone manufacturers. Without terminals & terminal boards, LED spacers and lens caps, PC board hardware, fuse clips and fuse holders, and battery and coin cell holders none of the amazing musical performances we experience would be possible. Our devices are used in the most technologically advanced, state of the art equipment that drives the newest ideas of today’s artists. If it is innovative, you can be sure that we are a part of it—after all, there’s a Keystone in every great invention!