Vibraphone.
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InstrumentVibraphone |
Instrument FamilyPercussion |
MakerPremier |
Date MadeCirca 1928 |
DescriptionTechnical description: Steel bars, widths 56 - 38, retained by steel strip running along the top of the upper bars and the bottom of the lower bars, at the node points of the bars. Single central damper pedal, functions to damp bars when depressed. Electric motor has a spherical body and is connected to a cast aluminium framework trademarked "The Unit". This is the speed governor of the type used in wind-up gramophones, and carries a spring-loaded disc with bob weights to regulate the speed by braking the disc against a felt stop. A lever moving the position of this stop allows the performer to adjust the speed, adjustment being indicated on a metal scale marked "Fast 78 Slow". Rubber belts drive the resonator paddle shafts separately. Bars are suspended on wooden frames covered in decorative plastic silver-effect sheeting. The end frames are also wooden and support the resonators and damper bar. The frame of the instrument is fabricated from angle iron and strip with a central pressed steel beam along the length of the instrument. Castors on all four feet on cast bosses, and the damper pedal also of cast construction. This instrument is very similar in construction to metallophones of the period, and could be a manufacturer's modification to their range to provide the new `vibraphone' or `vibraharp' effect. Unlike modern instruments, the bars are quite shallow and made from steel rather than aluminium alloy, providing a timbre different from that of the modern instrument. Repair History: The original clockwork motor replaced by electric. |
NotesR. Parks, 5.9.98; A. Myers; C. Overton, 22.8.98. |
Measurementsc 1360. |
Provenanceex- A.A. Shivas collection. ; Gift of Dunfermline College of Physical Education. |
CollectionMIMEd |
Accession Number1791 |