August 12th: US National Vinyl Record Day
Vinyl records are also known as gramophone records and phonograph records. This is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove.
In the beginning, until about 1960, records were made of shellac, a thicker, more brittle material. However, polyvinyl chloride became the most popular choice throughout the ‘40s, and this is how the name 'vinyl record' came about, it did not really matter what material was used.
In 2002, Music enthusiast and founder of the first nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation of the cultural influence of vinyl, Gary Freiberg of California created National Vinyl Record Day. He chose August 12th to commemorate the day because on this day the phonograph was invented by Thomas Edison in 1877. Though back in 1857 itself the phonautograph was patented by Leon Scott, this was not for the intention of playing them back at the time but for visual analysis. Just in 2008 that phonautograms of speech and singing that were made by Scott in the 1860s were played back as sound!
On Vinyl Record Day, Gary encourages everyone to remember the good things in life and to look back on fond memories, especially vinyl records. Even though the first record was made in the 1800s, records are still being created today! More vinyl records were sold than CDs in 2020.
On 4th September 2014 Swiss Post issued the below Record Stamp. There is a hole in the center of the round stamp so that it can be placed on the record player to play the brass version of the Swiss National Anthem.
