Music, one of the most understated and yet omnipresent part of our daily lifestyle. Music calms the mind, soothes the senses and lightens up life. Since ancient times, this form of art has been treated as a reverie, as cogitation, as a passion, no less than a way of life. It has the power to create and give strength in people in the direst of situation. Musicians have been time and again heralded as visionaries, and rightly so.

But again, music has been a form of art that has been most affected by the changing times and conditions. The evolution of the musical art form has been interminable in time. With each passing decade, technology has shaped and altered musical forms, creating new nuances and immortalizing the old.

Technology first started influencing music in the 1940s. Fresh out of World War II, the music of that era greatly depicted the widespread elation due to the end of the war, as well as the deep sorrow and agony at the huge losses to mankind. The advent of rock and roll, which included at that time jazz, country, folk, swing, and other types of music, was influenced greatly by the technology available at that time, both concerning instruments and recording techniques. Musical instruments such as the mandolin and the classic guitar were used by legendary artists and bands like Bill Haley and his comets. The saxophone was greatly utilized in the in-vogue style of Chicago blues. The electric guitar was brought into the mainstream in the late 1940s and early 1950s, then unknown that it was going to change the music industry forever. Since the recordings were done using microphones, tube valve amplifiers and 78-rpm discs cut by simple lathe machines (modern day discs have an rpm of 14,000 to 28,000), the sound quality of the discs available was less than modern day telephone voice quality. Thus, the leading bands and artists concentrated more on live performances and shows than on studio albums, which were recorded and aired on radio.

The music scene in the 1950s and 1960s saw a huge makeover owing to development in technologies. Amplification technologies led to the progress of the electric guitars, and when 19 year old Elvis Presley took up the heavily amplified electric guitar, it became a watershed point in the development of music. The 60s saw new electronics sounds coming in for pianos, guitars and percussions. The synthesizer was much easily available to new artists and this led to experimentation and development of styles such as R&B, blues and of course, the pop!

It was the 1970s which saw mainstream integration of music with technology. In 1970, Charles Wuorinen composed Time's Encomium, the first Pulitzer Prize winner for an entirely electronic composition. The German composers were much more adept at accepting and adopting electronically influenced music into the mainstream than their counterparts in the rest of the world. Extreme use of technology was considered dilation of music by musical purists, the attitude considered rebellious. The opposition to the Vietnam War in America and Asia led to breaking away of artists both on lyrical and instrumentation grounds, thus leading to a new wave of music and social activism, resulting in a new genre called rock. Through the decades of the 70s and 80s, the use of heavy guitars, bass guitars, and electronic drums formed the technologically based genres like metal, progressive and early-on punk rock, with bands like Pink Floyd leading the scene.

The era also saw the immensely popular genre of hip-hop coming up. With the invention of new gadgets like synthesizers, turntables, samplers, and personal computers, improvisation of music became much easier. The intertwining of music and the personal computer opened up a brand new avenue for musicians. Music composition and notation, sequencing, experimenting with and creating new sounds, and managing sound libraries all were accomplished faster and easier with the help of a personal computer. The Apply MIDI interface allowed easy connectivity of computers and electronic instruments. Disc jockeying became a mainstream profession as the ever popular disco carved its way into the minds and hearts of the masses.

Through the last two decades, we have witnessed numerous new genres which are purely technologically based, such as funk, electronic jazz, electro, trance and techno. Producers have become artists, and DJs rule entire genres. But the value of the artists who were on their own without technological help still remains true. Indian maestros like Pandit Jasraj, Pandit Ravi Shankar, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia have immortalized their respective instruments. Their sounds can be replicated electronically, but people still want to see their ageless idols showcasing their inimitable talent.

However, the acceptance of computers and technology changing music was slow to come. Bands like Metallica chose to perform for studio albums only after years of live shows and touring, as they believe being live was the ‘real stuff’. Even today, artists like Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, and bands like Bee gees and Dire Straits and so many more hold an irrevocable place in the hearts of all those who hear them, not just for the nostalgic value, but also for the appreciation of the pure talent that these legends possessed. Technological advancements don't turn poor musicians into great players. The distinct techniques and musical interpretations of great performers can't be recreated using technology. But technology can produce new musical effects and enhance the musical capabilities and possibilities of any musician. Millions of people wait years for their favorite musicians to come out with new songs and renditions. Songs which are created using manmade technological techniques, but which still hold some of the innermost parts of the human soul, to be cherished and celebrated in the lyrical form. To become immemorial.

Music has come a long way since Edison invented the phonogram in the 19th century, and the avenue is still expanding. Radio gave way to the television videos. Apple’s iTunes changed the way we acquired our music, ushering in a new era of digital music downloads. Music has changed with time and conditions. Today, technology is an inseparable and cohesive part of music, but music still remains what it always was: an art as integral a part of man as its own heart and soul.