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The componium is a mechanical musical instrument constructed in 1821 by Diederich Nikolaus Winkel (Lippstatt, Germany, 1777 - Amsterdam, Netherlands, 1826) that composes novel music. It is an automatic organ consisting of two barrels that revolve simultaneously. The barrels take turns performing two measures of randomly chosen music while the other, silent, slides horizontally to select the next variation. A roulette-like flywheel chooses whether or not the next variation is selected. The instrument plays an 80 measure piece, with eight variations for every two measures.
The componium's compositional power is thus limited to new combinations of the music provided in its barrels.
This instrument is believed to have copied some features of
The componium is a mechanical musical instrument constructed in 1821 by Diederich Nikolaus Winkel (Lippstatt, Germany, 1777 - Amsterdam, Netherlands, 1826) that composes novel music. It is an automatic organ consisting of two barrels that revolve simultaneously. The barrels take turns performing two measures of randomly chosen music while the other, silent, slides horizontally to select the next variation. A roulette-like flywheel chooses whether or not the next variation is selected. The instrument plays an 80 measure piece, with eight variations for every two measures.
The componium's compositional power is thus limited to new combinations of the music provided in its barrels.
This instrument is believed to have copied some features of Johann Nepomuk Mälzel
A metronome by Maelzel, Paris, 1815.
Johann Nepomuk Maelzel (or Mälzel; August 15, 1772 – July 21, 1838) was a German inventor, engineer, and showman, best known for manufacturing a metronome and several music-playing automatons, and displayi ...
s panharmonicon
The Panharmonicon was a musical instrument invented in 1805 by Johann Nepomuk Mälzel, a contemporary and friend of Beethoven. Beethoven composed his piece "Wellington's Victory" (Op. 91) to be played on Mälzel's mechanical orchestral organ a ...
, but added the aleatoric composition feature.
The componium, in a rather bad shape now, is in the collection of the Brussels Museum of Instruments.
Further reading
* Has some pictures of the componium. * Has a detailed chapter on the Componium by Rene Lyr. * Discusses philosophical implications of modelling consciousness in musical machines.Discography
* An unrecognised melody. Recorded in 1967 or 1969. Published originally in LP record ''Opname uit de verzamelingen van het Instrumentenmuseum te Brussel/Enregistrements de la collection du Musée instrumental de Bruxelles'' ( russel?: Nationale Diskoteek van België, 972? D.N.B. 30.007), which also accompanies book ''Les instruments de musique dans l'art et l'histoire'' by R. Bragard and Ferd. J. de Hen (Bruxelles, 1973); republished in CD record ''Instruments insolites/Muzikale meesterstukken/Unusual sounds'' (Bruxelles: Musée des instruments de musique (mim), ©2013. mim MIM015) {{Mechanical instruments Mechanical musical instruments