Magic Music from the Telharmonium

Rating:
Summary: Poignant story of a musical pioneer
Review: If you are interested in the story of Cahill and his mammoth musical instrument, the Telharmonium, you will find this book to be the most authoritative source of information on this fascinating invention and it's ignoble end. Weidenaar reconstructs the story of Cahill's invention from a myriad of documents and interviews, and truly shows the inventors vision and persistence in the face of ultimately insurmountable obstacles over a course of many years. Based on the authors Phd, this book is somewhat scholarly and many pages are taken up with appendices and bibliography. Regardless, it is a fascinating read for anyone interested in the early origins of electronic music to see how an inventor could manage to implement such a concept at the turn of the century before the advent of true electronics. I personally found it fascinating to see how a system invented before 1900 predated many modern concepts of music synthesis and distribution, and I saw similarity between the Telharmonium venture and many hi-tech startups of the modern age. Thaddeus Cahill was truly a man before his time, and Weidenaar's book provides Cahill with the recognition he has deserved for many years.