The Story of the Music Box

The music box, the first successful device that could play a musical tune, was probably invented in Switzerland around 1770. Early music boxes were designed to play music using flat metal prongs that were plucked by a revolving metal cylinder. Eventually music box makers developed a flat disc to play the music. Commercial music boxes were gradually replaced by player pianos and phonographs by the early 20th Century. In 1952, Emory Cook recorded an album of music made by American and European music boxes from the George and Madeleine Brown collection. Using his skill as an audio engineer, Cook was able to record a fuller sound frequency than had previously been available in sound recordings. The recording accompanied Brown’s book of the same name.

Track Listing

101	Jingle Bells (Version 1)	George and Madeleine Brown	00:59
102	Adeste Fideles	George and Madeleine Brown	01:46
103	Waldteufel: Skaters' Waltz	George and Madeleine Brown	01:08
104	First Noel	George and Madeleine Brown	01:12
105	Rossini: Prayer from William Tell	George and Madeleine Brown	01:09
106	Necke: Nightingale Song	George and Madeleine Brown	01:05
107	Valaque: Angel's Serenade	George and Madeleine Brown	00:59
108	Rossini: Stabat Mater	George and Madeleine Brown	00:51
109	Jingle Bells (Version 2)	George and Madeleine Brown	01:00
110	Auld Lang Syne	George and Madeleine Brown	01:27
111	Hark the Herald Angels	George and Madeleine Brown	01:51
112	Gounod: Ave Maria	George and Madeleine Brown	01:08
113	Song of the Virgin Mary	George and Madeleine Brown	00:53
114	Lefébure-Wély: Monastery Bells	George and Madeleine Brown	00:57
115	O'Sanctissima	George and Madeleine Brown	01:02
116	Cloister Bells	George and Madeleine Brown	01:02
117	Adams: Holy City	George and Madeleine Brown	01:25
118	Weber: Hunting Chorus	George and Madeleine Brown	01:10
119	Metra: Bells of Cornville	George and Madeleine Brown	01:08
120	Gruber: Silent Night	George and Madeleine Brown	02:09