Cognitive Dissonance: Lightning in a Bottle

What was the earliest sound ever recorded, or "bottled"? The First Sounds (FS) project, organized by a group of audio historians, scientists, and archivists, is dedicated to exploring these pioneering sounds, and sharing them with the world.

2011 / Chris Trimmer / CFRC, Canada

What was the earliest sound ever recorded, or "bottled"? The First Sounds (FS) project, organized by a group of audio historians, scientists, and archivists, is dedicated to exploring these pioneering sounds, and sharing them with the world.

Through dramatic re-enactment, interview, careful sound design and personal anecdote, producer Chris Trimmer and lead FS researcher Dr. Patrick Feaster examine the recordings of history's forgotten audio archivist and eccentric inventor Edouard Leon Scott de Martinville, who is now credited with bottling the first audible recordings of human speech in 1860 - nearly two decades before Thomas Edison captured "Mary Had a Little Lamb" on the phonograph.

Cognitive Dissonance: Lighting in a Bottle was produced in 2010 for CFRC-FM, the campus radio station of Queens University in Kingston, Ontario. Thanks to Dr. Patrick Feaster, Cian Cruise and Russ Baltes for their help with the program.


produced by

Chris Trimmer

Chris Trimmer is a radio producer, lecturer & experimental musician based in Kingston, Ontario. Following four years of graduate research and publication in Music Psychology he dropped out to pursue the same field within radio. Since then he?s produced Cognitive Dissonance - a documentary-style, sound art-infused radio program focusing on the psychological and cultural aspects of music. He?s worked at CFRC-FM as the Spoken Word programming manager and has been recognized by the National Campus/Community Radio Association (NCRA) for his documentaries & creative production.


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