Over the years, the different families of musical instruments
have crossed paths many times. This usually results in items that
can’t be categorized, so they are merely labeled Misc. Musical
Instruments. Not all of these musical hybrids are successful, but
there two in particular that turned out wonderfully: the melodica
and the omnichord. Although most people have never heard them,
they’ve been on countless popular recordings.
The Melodica
The melodica is a light, two-octave keyboard with a pipe at the
top. You hold the keyboard similarly to the way you would hold a
clarinet and blow into the pipe to create sound. The melodica was
invented in the sixties as a student instrument. It’s quite simple
to figure out and highly portable, which makes it ideal for use
anywhere. The melodica has a sweet organ-sounding tone that, when
heard on a recording, is hard to place. It is perfect for a
haunting single-note melody,. and when used with effects can
produce a quite a large sound. Different musicians who have found a
use for this instrument are R.E.M., Oasis, Steely Dan, and Depeche
Mode.
The Omnichord
The omnichord is actually the electronic version of an autoharp,
which is a hand-held instrument that the player strums with one
hand while pushing a button to switch chords with the other. The
omnichord works the same way as an autoharp, except there are no
strings. Instead there is a touch-sensitive pad. Invented by the
company Suzuki in the early eighties, it is very reminiscent of
that time period. The music comes out of a small speaker and there
is even a drum machine included on the instrument. The sounds are
very lo-fi, almost like Nintendo music, but the chords have a
dream-like quality that many musicians have grown very fond of.
Bands who have used this instrument include David Bowie, Brian Eno,
Grizzly Bear and Arcade Fire.
After hearing misc. musical instruments like these, it’s no
wonder that musicians become addicted to finding the newest sounds.
An omnichord and/or a melodica can give a recording just what it
needed and although they may be hard to categorize, they should not
be overlooked.
