Early recordings and musical style

Until recently, early recordings were regarded as little more than old-fashioned curiosities. Scholars and musicians now are beginning to realise their importance as historical documents which preserve the performances of Elgar, Rachmaninoff, Stravinsky, and other composers, and of the musicians with whom they worked. In a more general way, recordings reveal the detailed performance practice of the early twentieth century and illustrate how styles have changed over the years. Early recordings also shed new light on nineteenth-century performance, but at the same time they highlight the limi...