TromboneChat

Played by Subhraag Singh, the inventor, this sounds somewhere between a sax and a clarinet, but hits all the in-between notes that are hard to scratch on either. The recording in the article takes on a mid-eastern flavor, and the instrument fits that genre well, but I think it might fit some other sound scapes as well.

https://expmag.com/2021/03/it-looks-lik ... ket-newtab

It would be nice to see a video of him playing this, not just an audio file so we can get an idea of how it's operated.

baileyman wrote: ↑Thu Mar 25, 2021 12:20 pm

Oh, yeah. That's great. That up-lighting and his dead pan delivery along with over-use of "in history" makes this guy an instant classic!

After the recent star spangled banner thread, I've had as much third-stream as I can take for a few months. Plus, a robotic saxophone has GOT to be just extra evil. Thank god he wasn't a bagpiper.

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If Mr Singh wants his invention to have a long life, he'd better be prepared to adapt it to other platforms.
Will they still be using iPads in 10-20 years?

Mr. Subhraag Singh keeps down-talking classic "infiniton" instruments like strings, trombone or vocals. And the user interface of his 'first in history' invention is providing very little tactile feedback, so, its probably even harder to play well than a trombone or cello. Not sure this invention will ever spread out of his studio ...

hyperbolica wrote: ↑Thu Mar 25, 2021 1:16 pm Oh, yeah. That's great. That up-lighting and his dead pan delivery along with over-use of "in history" makes this guy an instant classic!

Yeah, production and presentation are both quite "introduction to cannibalism".

For those seeking flexible intonation in a more conveniently crotch-mounted form, may I suggest the following? It's worth sticking around for the concluding performance, where the ergonomic and artistic really get to know one another.
https://www.facebook.com/BBCArchive/vid ... 231381346/

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baileyman wrote: ↑Thu Mar 25, 2021 12:20 pm

I skipped to the end where he shows the thing actually in action - so, it's iPad controlled, and the acoustic instrument itself has automated slides controlling apertures.

My instinct is to tell him to get rid of the iPad and figure out how to make it more manipulatable by hands, because the whole point of acoustic instruments and direct control of their mechanics is musical expression that usually just isn't possible with an indirect interface like a tablet/MIDI keyboard. With the tablet removing this expressiveness, there's not a whole lot of difference with just using a speaker and having digital output.

Or, at least have options to switch between hand-control and tablet-control.

Seems he could program the pad buttons to be physical on the horn buttons to get that kind of connection.

Very clever!

I presume it is ultimately a joke since the embouchure-induced bending and error of sax tone production would out-strip any fineness of intonation the mechanism can deliver.