Journal of experimental musical instruments

Description

VOLUME 1 #4, DECEMBER 1985 “Letters” 3/4 page. Additional information on making the rectangular soundboard used in Ellen Fulman’s Long String Instrument described in EMI Volume 1 #2. [Additional keywords: soundboards, resonators] “The Bi-Level Guitar” by David F. Marriott, Intro. by Bart Hopkin. 3 pages; 3 photos, 1 diagram. New curved soundboard design for the acoustic guitar results in louder sound with more evenly distributed overtones. A Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) Spectral Analysis Program shows how the increased partials produce a sensation of brilliancy. Lab tests and modification of the guitar’s conventional structural properties to improve its articulation, timbre, sustain, and balance are described. [Additional keywords: classical guitars, envelopes, heat bending machines, struts, bracing, necks, fretboards, La Jolla Luthiers] “Slit Drums and Boos” by Bart Hopkin. 2 pages, 2 drawings. Wooden drums and their tuning problems: destructive communication between vibrations, e.g., “conflicting” notes, is addressed with various solutions provided. Jon Scoville and Reinhold Banek’s book, Sound Designs, is cited for other simple and practical variations of the slit drum. (Note: this article overstates the difficulties in tuning many-tongued tongue drums — take its pronouncements with a grain of salt.) [Additional keywords: log drums, wooden tongues, nail violins, tongue drums] “Holy Crustacean, Batman, That Beast Sings!” by Tom Nunn. 1 1/2 pages; 1 photo. Nunn’s Crustacean is a stainless steel disk with curved bronze rods brazed to its surface, and is supported on three inflated balloons. It is also effective for resonating a player’s own voice. Nunn briefly describes his playing technique, its construction and use in performances with Chris Brown in San Francisco. [Additional keywords: bowed metal, bowed idiophones, sympathetic vibrations] “Musical Instrument Classification Systems” by Bart Hopkin. 3 pages; 1 diagram. A brief history and overview of a system devised by Curt Sachs and Erich M. von Hornbostel in 1914 to address the inconsistencies in criteria for classifying instruments. A full-page chart illustrates the Sachs-Hornbostel System which is divided into four basic categories. A sidebar mentions three other more recent systems, reference titles, and also the classical Chinese system. [Additional keywords: museum curators, collectors, taxonomies, theory, organology] “Books: A Selected Guide for Reference Works Related to New Instruments” by Bart Hopkin. 1 & 1/2 pages. Listing of thirteen books in four categories: General, New Instruments, Musical Acoustics, and Tuning Systems. [Additional keywords: research, publications, libraries, dictionaries, education, encyclopedia, surveys, how-to, theory] VOLUME 1 #4, DECEMBER 1985 “Letters” 3/4 page. Additional information on making the rectangular soundboard used in Ellen Fulman’s Long String Instrument described in EMI Volume 1 #2. [Additional keywords: soundboards, resonators] “The Bi-Level Guitar” by David F. Marriott, Intro. by Bart Hopkin. 3 pages; 3 photos, 1 diagram. New curved soundboard design for the acoustic guitar results in louder sound with more evenly distributed overtones. A Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) Spectral Analysis Program shows how the increased partials produce a sensation of brilliancy. Lab tests and modification of the guitar’s conventional structural properties to improve its articulation, timbre, sustain, and balance are described. [Additional keywords: classical guitars, envelopes, heat bending machines, struts, bracing, necks, fretboards, La Jolla Luthiers] “Slit Drums and Boos” by Bart Hopkin. 2 pages, 2 drawings. Wooden drums and their tuning problems: destructive communication between vibrations, e.g., “conflicting” notes, is addressed with various solutions provided. Jon Scoville and Reinhold Banek’s book, Sound Designs, is cited for other simple and practical variations of the slit drum. (Note: this article overstates the difficulties in tuning many-tongued tongue drums — take its pronouncements with a grain of salt.) [Additional keywords: log drums, wooden tongues, nail violins, tongue drums] “Holy Crustacean, Batman, That Beast Sings!” by Tom Nunn. 1 1/2 pages; 1 photo. Nunn’s Crustacean is a stainless steel disk with curved bronze rods brazed to its surface, and is supported on three inflated balloons. It is also effective for resonating a player’s own voice. Nunn briefly describes his playing technique, its construction and use in performances with Chris Brown in San Francisco. [Additional keywords: bowed metal, bowed idiophones, sympathetic vibrations] “Musical Instrument Classification Systems” by Bart Hopkin. 3 pages; 1 diagram. A brief history and overview of a system devised by Curt Sachs and Erich M. von Hornbostel in 1914 to address the inconsistencies in criteria for classifying instruments. A full-page chart illustrates the Sachs-Hornbostel System which is divided into four basic categories. A sidebar mentions three other more recent systems, reference titles, and also the classical Chinese system. [Additional keywords: museum curators, collectors, taxonomies, theory, organology] “Books: A Selected Guide for Reference Works Related to New Instruments” by Bart Hopkin. 1 & 1/2 pages. Listing of thirteen books in four categories: General, New Instruments, Musical Acoustics, and Tuning Systems. [Additional keywords: research, publications, libraries, dictionaries, education, encyclopedia, surveys, how-to, theory]