Opera Takes to the Air
On January 13, 1910, singers at New York City’s Metropolitan Opera performed for people inside the opera house. But their voices were also part of an experiment that could carry sound beyond the building—without sending a singer out the door.
Radio was still a developing technology. On January 12 and 13, inventor Lee de Forest and his helpers experimented with sending sounds from the Metropolitan Opera through the air. These early broadcasts were not like today’s clear, reliable radio programs. They were tests of what the new equipment could do.
An opera combines acting, music, and singing. A singer’s voice makes the air vibrate, creating sound waves. Inside the opera house, those waves could travel directly to the ears of people in the audience. To send the sound farther, the experiment needed a different path.
First, a microphone picked up sounds from the performance. The microphone changed the sound vibrations into changing electrical signals. Those signals carried a pattern related to the sounds the singers and musicians made.
- experiment:
- A test used to find out what happens or whether something works.
- broadcasts:
- Sounds or programs sent out for people to receive.
- reliable:
- Able to work well and be depended on.
- signals:
- Patterns that carry information from one place to another.
- interfere:
- To get in the way of something and make it work less well.
- reception:
- The act of receiving a signal.
- accounts:
- Descriptions or reports of events.
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 1What was the main purpose of the Metropolitan Opera radio experiments?
- 2Why did the experiment need a different path for sound to reach beyond the opera house?
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About this explanatory article passage for 4th Grade
“Opera Takes to the Air” is a explanatory article reading passage about Early radio broadcasting, written for 4th Grade. It takes about 3 minutes to read (475 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.