Stereo sound can be traced back to developments made by EMI engineer ‘Alan Dower Blumlein’ in the 20th century. He patented his stereo sound technology in 1931, which involved the use of two grooves on records to create variations in amplitude of the stereo channels, as supposed to the previous dominant technology which only had one groove pattern that emitted a mono signal.
Stereo sound did not rise to become the dominant mode of audio production and listening until the 60’s due to the technology becoming more accessible to the general public. This process was encouraged by the use of stereo sound becoming standard in films, television and music, as well as the emerging popularity of other technologies such as tape machines and more elaborate mixing consoles and effects encouraging further experimentation with stereo sound.
By the 70’s and 80’s stereo was the standard for all devices, making space for further experimentation with what stereo sound could be. One such attempt was the quadraphonic sound system which involved 4 speakers in the corners of a space, however this did not take off due to its high costs and complex usage. One notable use of this technology was Pink Floyd’s ‘Dark Side of The Moon’, which was mixed in this format and performed live at Pompeii with this setup.
This technology did not go to waste, however, as it went on to influence the creation of the surround sound format as we know it, which is used predominantly in film but can be found in some more expensive home setups.
Currently, the emergence of spatial audio seems to me to be the next step forward in stereo sound and I am excited to see the technology become more accessible and fleshed out. In the future, experimenting more with different ways to mix and listen to music is something I want to explore, whether it be quadraphonic sound systems like Pink Floyd, spatial audio or any other technologies that will emerge.
Sources:
https://www.emiarchivetrust.org/alan-blumlein-and-the-invention-of-stereo/
Leave a Reply