the prat sampler, 1918

the prat sampler: overview

The PRAT Sampler, that is the Phono, Repeating, Audio, Track, Sampler, was found in the form of blueprint drawings, original instruction manual, and some company/personal papers of Edwin J Baird, dated back to 1916.

Baird's innovation was not well documented, or immediately further developed, but did indeed lay the foundations - and was the precursor to all modern day multi-track audio recording.

The PRAT Sampler was of course a four track wax cylinder recording and sampling machine; developed for writers and composers, allowing them to create new music, loops and compositions without the need for a full band. This domestic looking artifact comprised an imput horn, a length of musical pipe, a rotating shaft, four repeater arms and sound boxes, one recording arm and an output horn.

Ediwn J Baird was surely a visionary, his invention a true treasure for us to find and resurect to its former glory.