This paper is a historical study based on documentary sources about the first thirty years of the production of phonograph records in Chile. It started with the commercial distribution of the first records of Chilean musicians and artists produced by the Russian immigrant Efrain Band Blumenzweig, who created a record company named “Fonografía Artística” for these purposes. The Chilean record industry gradually became part of the national musical industry at the beginning of the 20th century. It begun with the commercial distribution of wax cylinders, an activity which is almost completely unknown today. At first the musical production was centered on national artists and designed for mass audiences, at a time when the repertory of records commonly distributed on a commercial basis in Chile consisted of foreign music interpreted mainly by European artists. The origin, development and the national context of this process are discussed in this article on the basis of unpublished documentary sources along with information furnished by the family descendants of Efrain Band. Besides a great amount of records owned by private collectors and by the authors of this article have been examined.
Keywords:
Efraín Band, Fonografía Artística, phonograph, Chilean Music
Garrido Escobar, F. J., & Menare Rowe, R. D. (2014). Efraín Band and the Beginning of the Production of Phonograph Records in Chile. Revista Musical Chilena, 68(221), p. 52 – 78. Retrieved from https://comunicacionymedios.uchile.cl/index.php/RMCH/article/view/32153
