Vocoder in the context of Multiplexing

Werner Meyer-Eppler (30 April 1913 – 8 July 1960), was a Belgian-born German physicist, experimental acoustician, phoneticist and information theorist.

Meyer-Eppler was born in Antwerp. He studied mathematics, physics, and chemistry, first at the University of Cologne and then in Bonn, from 1936 until 1939, when he received a doctorate in Physics. From 1942 to 1945 he was a scientific assistant at the Physics Institute of the University of Bonn. From the time of his habilitation on 16 September 1942, he was also Lecturer in Experimental Physics. After the end of the war, Meyer-Eppler turned attention increasingly to phonetics and speech synthesis. In 1947 he was recruited by Paul Menzerath to the faculty of the Phonetic Institute of the University of Bonn, where he became Scientific Assistant on 1 April 1949. During this time, Meyer-Eppler published essays on synthetic language production and presented American inventions like the Coder, the Vocoder, the Visible Speech Machine. He contributed to the development of the electrolarynx, which is still used today for the speech-impaired.

Kraftwerk (German pronunciation: [ˈkʁaftvɛʁk] , lit. 'power plant') is a German electronic band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk was among the first successful acts to popularise the genre. The group began as part of West Germany's experimental krautrock scene in the early 1970s before fully embracing electronic instrumentation, including synthesizers, drum machines, and vocoders. Wolfgang Flür joined the band in 1973 and Karl Bartos in 1975, expanding the band to a quartet.

On commercially successful albums such as Autobahn (1974), Trans-Europe Express (1977), The Man-Machine (1978), and Computer World (1981), Kraftwerk developed a self-described "robot pop" style that combined electronic music with pop melodies, sparse arrangements, and repetitive rhythms, while adopting a stylised image including matching suits. Following the release of Electric Café (1986), Flür left the group in 1987, followed by Bartos in 1990. The band released Tour de France Soundtracks, its most recent studio and concept album, in 2003. Founding member Florian Schneider left in 2008 to pursue solo work until his death in 2020. The band, with new members, has continued to tour under the leadership of Ralf Hütter.

Electro (also known as electro-funk, and sometimes referred to as electro-pop) is a genre of electronic dance music that emerged in the early 1980s. It is defined by the prominent use of the Roland TR-808 drum machine, and draws direct influence from early hip-hop and funk music.

Electro music is typically characterized by synthetic beats, robotic textures, and minimal or electronically processed vocals—often delivered through vocoders or talkboxes. Unlike its boogie predecessor, which emphasized vocal elements, electro focused more on rhythm and machine-generated sound.