Beat machines, also known as drum machines, are widely used today in making beats for music, especially hip hop, pop, rock and funk music. The first official beat machine named the Chamberlin Rhythmate was invented by Harry Chamberlin in 1949. It had magnetic tape loops and sound selections could be made from the recorded loops by switching the tape head to choose a beat or adjust the tempo.
In the 20th century the beat machine was developed into an electronic instrument by the Korg company in Japan, which designed the “Donca Matic,” known as one of the first all-electronic rhythm machines. Subsequently other companies caught onto the idea and used new technology to design the Kent and K-100 beat machines. In 1975 the Roland Corporation designed the first programmable drum machine and established itself as the leading brand in the beat machine music industry. By the 1980s the digital revolution gave rise to other industry leaders like Yamaha, Oberheim and Linn.
The first synthesizer was invented by Bob Moog in 1963. He experimented with electronics to modify the sound of music created by other instruments. By 1964 he created circuit boards for keyboards which are also known as keyboard synthesizers. His first keyboard synthesizer was introduced to the public at the Audio Engineering Society Convention in 1964. The first polyphonic synthesizer units were made in 1978 and had an analog design. The Moog Company naturally became the leading brand for synthesizers and other companies like Oberheim and Arp also started producing the instrument.