Evening Standard, UK: Europe's first recording studio and birthplace of EMI honored with plaque

Site of the first recording studio in Europe, started by Victor’s subsidiary, the Gramophone Company in 1898. (31 Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, London, UK)

In 1898, Fred Gaisberg, Alfred Clark, Emile Berliner, and Eldridge Johnson met in Camden, New Jersey to develop the foundations of the music industry. Berliner, invented the disk record and record player, Johnson improved upon the designs by adding a reliable motor and effective playback system. Clark worked with Johnson to develop the clearest sounding reproducer at the time, also known as the Clark-Johnson Reproducer. Gaisberg, as one of the earliest recording apprentices of Berliner, was delegated to take the lead on recording expeditions in the UK, Europe, and India.

Before leaving to establish the Victor’s subsidiary, the Gramophone Company in the UK, Gaisberg states that his last stop was at Eldridge Johnson’s Camden workshop, Johnson, “gave me my instructions”. Once in England, Gaisberg established the Gramophone Company’s recording studio and offices on the first floor of 31 Maiden Lane in Covent Garden, London.

One of the “crucibles” of the UK’s music industry will finally get the recognition it deserves next week when a plaque is unveiled on the site of Europe’s first recording studio.