The Drum Buddy, invented by

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Ninth Ward The Ninth Ward or 9th Ward is a distinctive region of New Orleans, Louisiana, which is located in the easternmost downriver portion of the city. It is geographically the largest of the 17 Wards of New Orleans. On the south, the Ninth Ward is bound ...

one-man band Quintron, is a light-activated

oscillating Oscillation is the repetitive or periodic variation, typically in time, of some measure about a central value (often a point of equilibrium) or between two or more different states. Familiar examples of oscillation include a swinging pendulum ...

drum machine which operates on the principles of an

optical sound Optical sound is a means of storing sound recordings on transparent film. Originally developed for military purposes, the technology first saw widespread use in the 1920s as a sound-on-film format for motion pictures. Optical sound eventually ...

theremin The theremin (; originally known as the ætherphone/etherphone, thereminophone or termenvox/thereminvox) is an electronic musical instrument controlled without physical contact by the performer (who is known as a thereminist). It is named afte ...

. An electronic instrument developed in the Spellcaster Lodge QElectronics laboratory, only 44 units hand-assembled by Quintron exist. Its four voices – Space, Snare, Bass and Kick, are triggered by activating a

photoelectric cell A solar cell, or photovoltaic cell, is an electronic device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect, which is a physical and chemical phenomenon.

either intermittently or with an on/off

DIP switch A DIP switch is a manual electric switch that is packaged with others in a group in a standard dual in-line package (DIP). The term may refer to each individual switch, or to the unit as a whole. This type of switch is designed to be used on a ...

in combination with exposure to light. The Drum Buddy is outfitted with a light fixture on a periscopic pipe fixed to its base. The fixture's bulb can be controlled by means of a dimmer switch. The bulb hangs above a rotating platen upon which a number 10 can (the large size common to coffee, canned vegetables and some sauces) prepared with holes and non-reflective paint is placed. As the can rotates, its holes pass the Drum Buddy's photoelectric cells, firing drum-like tones and theremin or Moog synthesizer-like chirps or buzzes. Accomplished purveyors of the Drum Buddy can operate the instrument freestyle by "scratching" the can back and forth against the resistance of the platen's motor or by performing short solos on the bass channel's 12-point

chromatic scale The chromatic scale (or twelve-tone scale) is a set of twelve pitches (more completely, pitch classes) used in tonal music, with notes separated by the interval of a semitone. Chromatic instruments, such as the piano, are made to produce th ...

References

External links

Official Drum Buddy web site
{{DIY Culture in Electronic Music Drum machines DIY culture