Ramiro Arguello wrote:

>I just read about J. Brahms and I quote:
>
> He also may have enjoyed the distinction of being the first of
> the great composers to have his voice recorded, as well as his
> work, using the wax cylinders of contemporary Thomas Alva Edison.
>
>Does any of the listers heard of knows about this?

Sure.  The 1889 cylinder has been available on record for a while: it
was first published on LP AFAIK in Pearl's Pupils of Clara Schumann box
and has been reissued on CD too I believe.

There is considerable doubt as to whether the voice heard at the beginning
is actually Brahms or that of the recording engineer.  There is definitely
a piano in there somewhere, but it could just as easily be playing John
Cage as the Hungarian Dance allegedly captured on the cylinder.

A historical curiosity really.

Deryk Barker
dbarker @camosun.bc.ca