Technological developments 4

Question 1

When was the minidisc invented/released?

Answer 1

1992

Question 2

What is a minidisc?

Answer 2

• By the late 1980s, audio cassettes were being displaced hard by CDs
• Sony’s Minidisc system was intended as a higher-capacity digital replacement for portable cassette recorders and players, including Sony’s own Walkman.
• Despite being well-received by audio specialists, the Minidisc never achieved the mass-market popularity Sony had hoped for.

Question 3

How the minidisc developed?

Answer 3

• Developed by Sony in the early 1990s, the minidisc was a small device for storing digital data.
• The rise of inexpensive recordable CDs and compact flash memory soon made these formats grow in popularity amongst consumers.
• This led to a decline in the use of Minidiscs.
• Commercial albums were initially released on minidisc, although by that stage CDs had a large share of the digital music market.

Question 4

Minidisc key features?

Answer 4

• Minidiscs could be easily recorded onto and were adopted by many studios as their first choice of mastering.
• Minidiscs were one third the size of CDs, but offered the exact same capacity.

Question 5

What is a performance software?

Answer 5

• Music performance software will allow you to generate musical excerpts using pre-recorded sound clips you can mix with virtual and digital or acoustic instruments to create an overall project.

Question 6

How performance software developed?

Answer 6

• Software, such as Ableton Live, developed for performing which lets users record and edit without stopping playback.
• This allowed musicians to use the software as their ‘instrument’.
• Ableton Live was commercially released in 2001.
• Ableton also allows for composing and experimenting with ideas.

Question 7

When was the sequencer invented/released?

Answer 7

1960

Question 8

What is a sequencer?

Answer 8

A sequencer records the musical notes on real-time as on audio recorders, and play-backs musical notes with a set tempo and pitch.

Question 9

How the sequencer developed?

Answer 9

There are numerous sequencers available at the moment such as:
- Cubase
- Logic
- Reaper

Question 10

Sequencer key features?

Answer 10

A sequencer is a piece of software able to put your audio in a playable order.