During the last century Light Music gradually evolved from something rather genteel at the end of Queen Victoria's reign, to the modern sounds that high-fidelity made possible in the 1950s. In the 1920s and 1930s the advent of electrical sound recording, and the popularity of radio, brought melodic and tuneful music into the homes of millions. Jazz also made its influence felt, with composers such as Eric Coates embracing its infectious rhythms. The entertainment industry felt the need to keep people happy, despite the misery created by the stock market crash in 1929 and the great depression that ensued.

Artists

Regal Cinema Orchestra, Athenaeum Light Orchestra, Barnabas Von Geczy Orchestra, BBC Theatre Orchestra, Berliner Philharmoniker, Bournemouth Municipal Orchestra, Commodore Grand Orchestra, Debroy Somers Band, Julian Fuhs' Symphony Orchestra, London Coliseum Orchestra, London Palladium Orchestra, Nat Shilkret Orchestra, New Light Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Raymonde, Plaza Theatre Orchestra, Reginald King's Orchestra, Scala Salon Orchestra, West End Celebrity Orchestra, Emanuel Starkey, Nat Shilkret, Horace Sheldon, Frank Tours, Alfred Dove, Barnabas von Geczy, Eduard Künneke, Joseph Muscant, Julian Fuhs, Reginald King, Sir Dan Godfrey, Stanford Robinson