J Powers's video: New England Phonograph Company building - Boston MA - A Pioneering Cylinder Record Company - 1890s

The New England Phonograph Company was one of the America's pioneering cylinder record companies. Very little information can be found about its history, but we *do* know that the company was formed in 1888 (in Maine), relocated to Boston in 1889, and some of the most popular recording artist of the time got their start here. Of note, Dan W Quinn, Edward M Favor, J Thomas Baldwin, Russell Hunting, and Richard Jose recorded for the company during the in these early days of the brown wax era. The home of The New England Phonograph Company was 2 Boylston St, Boston, MA. The Boylston Building still stands today, and is locating in a bustling part of downtown Boston, between Chinatown and the Boston Common. Here is a short video of the exterior of the building. Sorry for the poor quality. "The New England Phonograph Company was organized October 1888 in Gardiner Maine, then moved to the Boylston Building in Boston in May 1889. It was managed by Augustus Sampson, and the exhibition department was managed first by F.A. Ashcroft then Charles L. Marshall. The company was frequently praised in Phonogram for their high-quality band records, taken by Calvin G. Child who would go on to record for Columbia, Ohio, Berliner and Victor in the following years. Acoustic recording was an art and science developed painstakingly over years of trial and error, and each company cultivated the skills of one or more expert recordists[v]. Baldwin’s Cadet Band, led by J. Thomas Baldwin, and Russell Hunting’s “Michael Casey” series of Irish comic skits were New England’s best-sellers. Vocalists Will F. Denny, Edward M. Favor and Richard Jose first recorded for New England and would each go on to successful recording careers. An August 1893 catalog in a private collection reflects that the Cadet Band’s repertoire was deeply influenced the United States Marine Band’s Columbia records. It also features several pages of “Henry’s Orchestra”, led by Thomas W. Henry who had previously played in Gilmore’s Band (as had Baldwin). The catalog concludes with a small section for Charles E. Cooper’s Celebrated Fife, Drum and Bugle Corps and solos by the late great cornetist Walter Emerson." source: https://arsc-audio.org/blog/tag/new-england-phonograph-company/