Edison Records
Thomas A. Edison invented the phonograph, the first device for recording and playing back sound, in 1877. After patenting the invention and benefiting from the publicity and acclaim it received, Edison and his laboratory turned their attention to the commercial development of electric lighting, playing no further role in the development of the phonograph for nearly a decade. Edison's original phonograph recorded on sheets of tinfoil and was little more than a crude curiosity, although one that fascinated much of the public. These earliest phonographs were sold mainly to entrepreneurs who made a living out of traveling around the country giving "educational" lectures in hired halls or otherwise demonstrating the device to audiences for a fee. The tinfoil phonograph was not fit for any real practical use and public interest soon waned.
Andy Bereza
Andy Bereza's audio engineering career peaked in 1979 with the creation of the Portastudio, finally developed by TASCAM. The Portastudio was a device which enabled artists, for the first time, to carry a "portable studio" around with them. Although today, with digital technology, portable recorders are almost ubiquitous; at the time, the Portastudio revolutionized how artists recorded music. It was the first device that had four inputs for microphones and a tape recorder to record four simultaneous tracks. This meant that musicians, for the first time, could record almost studio quality music whenever and wherever they liked.