Mellotron
The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed in Birmingham, England, in 1963. It is played by pressing its keys, each of which causes a length of magnetic tape to contact a Capstan (tape recorder), capstan, which pulls it across a playback head. As the key is released, the tape is retracted by a spring to its initial position. Different portions of the tape can be played for different sounds. The Mellotron evolved from the similar Chamberlin, but could be mass-produced more efficiently. The first models were designed for the home and contained a variety of sounds, including automatic accompaniments. Bandleader Eric Robinson (conductor), Eric Robinson and television personality David Nixon (magician), David Nixon helped promote the first instruments, and celebrities such as Princess Margaret were early adopters. It was adopted by rock and pop groups in the mid to late 1960s. One of the first pop songs featuring the Mellotron was Manfred Mann's "Semi-Detach ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mellotron Diagram
The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed in Birmingham, England, in 1963. It is played by pressing its keys, each of which causes a length of magnetic tape to contact a capstan, which pulls it across a playback head. As the key is released, the tape is retracted by a spring to its initial position. Different portions of the tape can be played for different sounds. The Mellotron evolved from the similar Chamberlin, but could be mass-produced more efficiently. The first models were designed for the home and contained a variety of sounds, including automatic accompaniments. Bandleader Eric Robinson and television personality David Nixon helped promote the first instruments, and celebrities such as Princess Margaret were early adopters. It was adopted by rock and pop groups in the mid to late 1960s. One of the first pop songs featuring the Mellotron was Manfred Mann's "Semi-Detached, Suburban Mr. James" (1966). The Beatles used it on tracks including ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mike Pinder
Michael Thomas Pinder (27 December 1941 – 24 April 2024) was an English rock musician. He was a founding member and the original keyboard player of the rock group the Moody Blues. He left the group following the recording of the band's ninth album ''Octave (album), Octave'' in 1978. Pinder was renowned for his technological contributions to rock music, most notably in the development and emergence of the Mellotron in 1960s rock music. In 2018, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Moody Blues. The Moody Blues Early years Pinder was born in Erdington, Birmingham on 27 December 1941. His father, Bert, was a coach driver and his mother, Gladys (née Lay), was a barmaid. As a child, he had an affinity for rocket ships and outer space which earned him the nickname "Mickey the Moon Boy". These interests would be recurring themes throughout his career as a song writer. He was a member of several bands in Birmingham in his teenage years, among the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Days Of Future Passed
''Days of Future Passed'' is the second studio album by English progressive rock band the Moody Blues, released on 17 November 1967, by Deram Records. It has been cited by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and others as one of the earliest albums of the progressive rock genre and one of rock music's first concept albums. The album represents a significant creative turning point for the band. The album is their first with guitarist and singer Justin Hayward, who replaced Denny Laine, and bassist John Lodge, who replaced Clint Warwick. The album is also their first to feature longtime producer and collaborator Tony Clarke and the first to feature keyboardist Mike Pinder on Mellotron. These changes, combined with a shift away from R&B covers toward original compositions and a thematic concept, helped define the band's sound for the next several albums and earned the group new critical and commercial success. The album was recorded to showcase the stereo recording techniques ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Moody Blues
The Moody Blues were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in May 1964. The band initially consisted of Graeme Edge (drums), Denny Laine (guitar/vocals), Mike Pinder (keyboards/vocals), Ray Thomas (multi-instrumentalist/vocals) and Clint Warwick (bass/vocals). Originally part of the British Beat music, beat and rhythm and blues, R&B scene of the early–mid 1960s, the band came to prominence with the UK No. 1 and US Top 10 single "Go Now" in late 1964/early 1965. Laine and Warwick both left the band in 1966, with Edge, Pinder and Thomas recruiting new members Justin Hayward (guitar/vocals) and John Lodge (musician), John Lodge (bass/vocals). They embraced the psychedelic rock movement of the late 1960s, with their second album, 1967's ''Days of Future Passed'', being a fusion of rock with classical music (performed with the London Festival Orchestra) that established the band as pioneers in the development of art rock and progressive rock.Runtagh, Jordan"The Moody Blues' 'Ni ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chamberlin
The Chamberlin is an electro-mechanical keyboard instrument that was a precursor to the Mellotron. It was developed and patented by the American inventor Harry Chamberlin from 1949 to 1956, when the first model was introduced. There are several models and versions of the Chamberlin. While most are keyboard-based, there were also early drum machines produced and sold. Some of these drum patterns feature the work of Chamberlin's son Richard. Development Harry Chamberlin's idea for the instrument came from recording himself playing an organ and conceiving its playback as entertainment. He designed the first Chamberlin instrument as early as 1949, intended as a home entertainment device for family sing-alongs and playing the big band standards of the day. The Chamberlin's use as a commercial instrument in rock (or rock and roll) music was not considered, as Harry Chamberlin disliked rock music and rock musicians. The Chamberlin has a piano-style keyboard. Underneath each key is a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Strawberry Fields Forever
"Strawberry Fields Forever" is a song by the English Rock music, rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released on 13 February 1967 as a double A-side single with "Penny Lane". It represented a departure from the group's previous singles and a novel listening experience for the contemporary pop audience. While the song initially divided and confused music critics and the group's fans, it proved highly influential on the emerging Psychedelic music, psychedelic genre. Its accompanying promotional film is similarly recognised as a pioneering work in the medium of music video. Lennon based the song on his childhood memories of playing in the garden of Strawberry Field, a The Salvation Army, Salvation Army children's home in Liverpool. Starting in November 1966, the band spent 45 hours in the studio, spread over five weeks, creating three versions of the track. The final recording combined two of those versions, which were entirely ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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David Nixon (magician)
David Porter Nixon (29 December 1919 – 1 December 1978)GRO Register of Births: MAR 1920 3a 1125 EDMONTON - David P. NixonGRO Register of Deaths: DEC 1978 17 1052 SURREY SE - David Porter Nixon, DoB = 29 Dec 1919 was an English magician and television personality. At the height of his career, Nixon was among the best-known magicians in the UK. Early life Born in Muswell Hill, London, Nixon attended the Westcliff High School for Boys in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex. His father was a lawyer whose hobby was magic and who took Nixon to watch performers such as Nevil Maskelyne and David Devant. One magician who made an early impression on the young boy was Stanley Collins, who had a gentlemanly image which influenced Nixon's later performing style. Nixon started performing magic himself after an aunt bought him an Ernest Sewell Magic Box for Christmas. On leaving school he gained a job with the ''Henley Telegraph'', the in-house magazine of the W. T. Henley Telegraph company, a publica ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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King Crimson
King Crimson were an English progressive rock band formed in London in 1968 by Robert Fripp, Michael Giles, Greg Lake, Ian McDonald (musician), Ian McDonald and Peter Sinfield. Guitarist Fripp remained the only constant member throughout the band's long history. The band drew inspiration from a wide variety of music, incorporating elements of classical music, classical, jazz, folk music, folk, heavy metal music, heavy metal, gamelan, blues, industrial (music), industrial, electronic music, electronic, and experimental music. They exerted a strong influence on the early 1970s progressive rock movement, including on contemporaries such as Yes (band), Yes and Genesis (band), Genesis, and continue to inspire subsequent generations of artists across multiple genres. The band has earned a large cult following, especially in the 21st century. The band's debut album, ''In the Court of the Crimson King'' (1969), remains their most commercially successful and influential release. The ne ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Keyboard Instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument played using a keyboard, a row of levers that are pressed by the fingers. The most common of these are the piano, organ, and various electronic keyboards, including synthesizers and digital pianos. Other keyboard instruments include celestas, which are struck idiophones operated by a keyboard, and carillons, which are usually housed in bell towers or belfries of churches or municipal buildings. Today, the term ''keyboard'' often refers to keyboard-style synthesizers and arrangers as well as work-stations. These keyboards typically work by translating the physical act of pressing keys into electrical signals that produce sound. Under the fingers of a sensitive performer, the keyboard may also be used to control dynamics, phrasing, shading, articulation, and other elements of expression—depending on the design and inherent capabilities of the instrument. Modern keyboards, especially digital ones, can simulate a wide range of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Eric Robinson (conductor)
Eric Robinson (13 December 1908 – 24 July 1974) was a conductor and presenter of music for the BBC. During World War II, Robinson served in the Royal Army Ordnance Corps: in 1943, he was with the depot band at Chilwell Central Ordnance Depot, and conducted "The Blue Rockets", a section of the band who provided light music. He was twice the musical director of the Eurovision Song Contest when staged in London in 1960 and 1963 and on other occasions between 1957 and 1965, Robinson conducted the orchestra accompanying the United Kingdom's entry in the competition. In 1962, Robinson and musician George Clouston bought IBC Studios from Leonard Plugge. Robinson also provided the financial support and backing for Mellotronics, a company formed to distribute and market the Mellotron tape-replay keyboard, and Robinson was heavily involved in the original marketing and promotion. He hoped the popularity of a new and novel instrument would revitalise his career. IBC Studios was used ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Yes (band)
Yes are an English progressive rock band formed in London in 1968. Comprising List of Yes band members, 20 full-time musicians over their career, their most notable members include lead singer Jon Anderson, bassist Chris Squire, guitarists Steve Howe and Trevor Rabin, drummers Bill Bruford and Alan White (Yes drummer), Alan White, and keyboardists Tony Kaye (musician), Tony Kaye and Rick Wakeman. The band have explored several musical styles and are often regarded as progressive rock pioneers. Since February 2023, the band's line-up consists of Howe, keyboardist Geoff Downes, bassist Billy Sherwood, singer Jon Davison, and drummer Jay Schellen. Founded by Anderson, Squire, Bruford, Kaye, and guitarist Peter Banks, Yes began performing a mix of original songs and covers of Rock music, rock, Pop music, pop, Blues, blues, and Jazz, jazz songs, as showcased on their first two albums, ''Yes (Yes album), Yes'' (1969) and ''Time and a Word'' (1970). A change of direction in 1970 after ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sample-based Synthesis
Sample-based synthesis is a form of audio synthesis that can be contrasted to either subtractive synthesis or additive synthesis. The principal difference with sample-based synthesis is that the seed waveforms are sampled sounds or instruments instead of fundamental waveforms such as sine and saw waves used in other types of synthesis.''Synthesizer Basics''. United States, H. Leonard Books, 1988. 72f. History Before digital recording became practical, instruments such as the Welte (1930s), phonogene (1950s) and the Mellotron (1960s) used analog optical disks or analog tape decks to play back sampled sounds. When sample-based synthesis was first developed, most affordable consumer synthesizers could not record arbitrary samples, but instead formed timbres by combining pre-recorded samples from ROM before routing the result through analog or digital filters. These synthesizers and their more complex descendants are often referred to as ROMplers. Sample-based instr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |