grindertom
26th September 2003, 05:54 PM
I have just registered as a member of the "Bamboo Forums" to learn more about using bamboo as a construction medium in organ pipes. I have been an organ grinder for some years and have built several crank (monkey) organs over the last 15 years for both myself and friends. There is no full-time small mechanical organ builder in the United States and other than for a recent short period of time there hasn't been one for several decades.
There are essentially two styles of crank organs, those built in Berlin and those in the Black Forest. Berlin organ sound is very strident and forceful resulting from a rank of piccolo pipes mounted as the first row of pipes in the organ. This stridency is due mostly to the fact the resenators for the pipes are brass pipes giving them a harsh, piercing sound. This also makes it hard to keep the piccolo pipe rank in tune because as soon as the sun hits them they expand lengthwise driving them very sharp.
While visiting european museums devoted to all sorts of mechanical musical instruments made by europeans over the past 300 years I realized many of the old instrument master builders used bamboo for piccolo resonators. I want to make a rank of piccolos with bamboo resonators for a new organ I am building; but, unfortunately I know nothing about the accoustic properties of bamboo; bamboo's physical characteristics and sources of supply.
The resonators sit on top of a cross-blown windway; kind of like blowing a pop bottle. They will vary in internal diameter (the critical dimension) from 9\16 inch to 3\8 inch. Hopefully the wall thickness would be no more than 1\16 inch. The length (also important) will vary from approximately 4 inches to 2-1\2 inches. If anyone can give me any guidance as to a variety of bamboo I should be using and where I may acquire the same it will be greatly appreciated.
Tom Griffith
There are essentially two styles of crank organs, those built in Berlin and those in the Black Forest. Berlin organ sound is very strident and forceful resulting from a rank of piccolo pipes mounted as the first row of pipes in the organ. This stridency is due mostly to the fact the resenators for the pipes are brass pipes giving them a harsh, piercing sound. This also makes it hard to keep the piccolo pipe rank in tune because as soon as the sun hits them they expand lengthwise driving them very sharp.
While visiting european museums devoted to all sorts of mechanical musical instruments made by europeans over the past 300 years I realized many of the old instrument master builders used bamboo for piccolo resonators. I want to make a rank of piccolos with bamboo resonators for a new organ I am building; but, unfortunately I know nothing about the accoustic properties of bamboo; bamboo's physical characteristics and sources of supply.
The resonators sit on top of a cross-blown windway; kind of like blowing a pop bottle. They will vary in internal diameter (the critical dimension) from 9\16 inch to 3\8 inch. Hopefully the wall thickness would be no more than 1\16 inch. The length (also important) will vary from approximately 4 inches to 2-1\2 inches. If anyone can give me any guidance as to a variety of bamboo I should be using and where I may acquire the same it will be greatly appreciated.
Tom Griffith