Klarinet Archive - Posting 000507.txt from 2002/04

From: "Lacy, Edwin" <el2@-----.edu>
Subj: RE: [kl] Logical Bassoon (was Octave repeaters vs. Twelfth repeat
Date: Thu, 18 Apr 2002 18:04:58 -0400

> From: Don Yungkurth

<<<To make life easier for the bassoon-blower, Giles Brindley, professor of
physiology in the University of London, has redesigned the instrument,
producing a "logical bassoon" in which the pads are pulled away from the air
holes by electromagnets controlled by logic circuits.
[........]
<<<On Radio 3 a prototype logical bassoon was put through its paces by
William Waterhouse, a bassoonist with the BBC Symphony Orchestra,>>>

Interesting. I believe that Brindley had a colleague (or partner in crime)
in his efforts to create the "electric bassoon," Hungarian-born Zoltan
Lukacs. William Waterhouse was one of my bassoon teachers, and I have
actually played the electric bassoon. It was based on some very interesting
logical concepts, and the idea is a very attractive one. However, I can
tell you that the result, even in its later incarnations, was a long way
from a musical instrument.

Instead of holes and keys, there was a keypad for each hand, each one much
like the number keypad on your computer keyboard. Incomprehensibly, the
positions of the two hands were reversed, with the right hand keypad on top
and the left one on the bottom. Yet, the sequence of keys was somewhat like
the sequence of keys on the standard bassoon. For example, to play a C
scale, you would depress three keys on the left hand keypad, and then lift
fingers one at a time to produce D and E, all the while trying to cope with
having to do this with the left hand lower than the right. Then you would
shift to the right hand keypad, and continue the sequence. There were tone
holes up and down the length of the tube, with keys covering them, each one
controlled by an electromagnet. The idea was that it would be easier to
experiment with tone hole placement and size by using this arrangement. If
a key was in the wrong place, they would just fill it in, drill a new hole,
and move the electormatically-controlled pad over to cover the new hole.
Their ultimate intention, after they had figured out where they wanted the
tone holes to be located, was to construct a more-or-less traditional system
of keywork to control the movement of the pads, dispensing with the
electronic mechanism.

The electric bassoon had an incredible array of wires, transformers,
transistors, and other electronic paraphernalia attached to it. It was so
heavy that it had to be played with a floor peg. As far as I know, the main
conclusion they reached was that one could replace the bell on the bassoon
with one of different bore design, and get a different sound and response
from the instrument. (Not a particularly revolutionary concept.)

Unfortunately, Mr. Lukacs passed away before the experiment was complete.
Lack of sufficient funds had always been a problem for their research.

BTW, Zoltan Lukacs had a full beard, and looked more like the cowardly lion
in the movie "The Wizard of Oz" than any other human being on the face of
the earth. Now, imagine the cowardly lion playing an electric bassoon.
It's a sight you would never forget.

Ed Lacy
University of Evansville

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