The melodica is a handheld
free-reed instrument similar to a
pump organ or
harmonica
The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica in ...
. It features a
musical keyboard
A musical keyboard is the set of adjacent depressible levers or keys on a musical instrument. Keyboards typically contain keys for playing the twelve notes of the Western musical scale, with a combination of larger, longer keys and smaller, s ...
on top, and is played by blowing air through a mouthpiece that fits into a hole in the side of the instrument. The keyboard usually covers two or three
octave
In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...
s. Melodicas are small, lightweight, and portable, and many are designed for children to play. They are popular in music education programs, especially in Asia. The modern form of the instrument was invented by
Hohner
Hohner Musikinstrumente GmbH & Co. KG is a German manufacturer of musical instruments, founded in 1857 by Matthias Hohner (1833–1902). The roots of the Hohner firm are in Trossingen, Baden-Württemberg. Since its foundation, and though known ...
in the late 1950s, though similar instruments have been known in Italy since the 19th century.
Description
The mouthpiece can be a short rigid or semi-flexible plastic piece or a long flexible plastic tube (designed to allow the player to either hold the keyboard so the keys can be seen or lay the keyboard horizontally on a flat surface for two-handed playing). A foot pump can also be used as an alternative to breathing into the instrument. Melodica keyboards typically ascend from a low F note. In the 21st century, 32 and 37 note keyboards are typical, though instruments may have as few as 13 or as many as 44 keys. The melodica with the largest range is the Hammond Pro 44, which has a range of 44 notes.
Pressing a key opens a hole, allowing the player's breath to flow through a single
reed. The sound of each vibrating reed reverberates in the shell of the instrument, which may be made of plastic, timber or metal. The harder the player blows, the louder the note. An external microphone can be used to amplify the instrument or record its sound. Hammond's Pro-44 melodion and Pro 24-B bass melodion each have built-in dynamic microphones which can be connected to a PA system or recording device via a single TRS 1/4" jack output.
Melodicas range in price from under US$20 for a simple, plastic instrument to several thousand dollars for a rare, custom-made or antique model.
Use
The melodica was first used as a serious musical instrument in the 1960s by composers such as
Steve Reich
Stephen Michael Reich ( ; born October 3, 1936) is an American composer known for his contribution to the development of minimal music in the mid to late 1960s. Reich's work is marked by its use of repetitive figures, slow harmonic rhythm, ...
, in his piece titled ''Melodica'' (1966). Brazilian multi-instrumentalist
Hermeto Pascoal
Hermeto Pascoal (born June 22, 1936) is a Brazilian composer and multi-instrumentalist. He was born in Lagoa da Canoa, Alagoas, Brazil. Pascoal is a significant figure in the history of Brazilian music, mainly known for his abilities in orche ...
developed a technique consisting of singing while playing the melodica, resulting in a wide tonal and harmonic palette. Jamaican
dub and
reggae
Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use the ...
musician
Augustus Pablo popularized it in the 1970s, and his son
Addis Pablo
Addis Pablo is a Jamaican reggae musician, the son of Augustus Pablo
Horace Swaby (21 June 1953 – 18 May 1999),Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, , p. 200-202 known as Augustus Pablo, was a Jamaican root ...
continues his father's tradition as a melodica player within these genres. The American musician
Jon Batiste
Jonathan Michael Batiste (born November 11, 1986) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, bandleader, and television personality. He has recorded and performed with artists in various genres of music (Stevie Wonder, Prince, Willie Nelson, ...
was often seen playing a melodica on ''
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert''. The instrument is also associated with the
Inti Raymi festival in
Otavalo, Ecuador.
Types
Melodicas are classified primarily by the range of the instrument. Melodicas with different ranges have slightly different shapes.
* Soprano and alto melodicas are higher-pitched and thinner sounding than tenors. Some are designed to be played with both hands at once: the left hand plays the black keys, and the right hand plays the white keys. Others are played like the tenor melodica.
* Tenor melodicas are a lower-pitched type of melodica. The left hand holds a handle on the bottom, and the right hand plays the keyboard. Tenor melodicas can be played with two hands by inserting a tube into the mouthpiece hole and placing the melodica on a flat surface.
* Bass melodicas include the Hohner Melodica-Basso (discontinued), the Suzuki B-24 Bass Melodion and the Hammond Bass Melodion BB-24.
* The Accordina aka 'Chromatic Button Melodica', generally made of metal, uses the same mechanism and reeds as a traditional melodica. The keyboard is replaced with a button arrangement similar to a
chromatic button accordion's keyboard.
Wooden melodicas
Daren Banarsë makes melodicas with a combination of 3D printing, woodwork, and high-quality Italian reeds. These reeds respond better to airflow, stay in tune longer, and allow a more balanced dynamic within chords. His wooden instruments are “professional-looking” and “backed up by a high, crisp tone similar to that of an accordion”. The Sound Electra corporation makes the ''MyLodica'', a wooden melodica designed "...to produce a warmer richer sound than that of its plastic relatives." The Victoria Accordion company in
Castelfidardo
Castelfidardo (Marchigiano: ''Castello'') is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Ancona, in the Marche region of central-eastern Italy.
It is remembered for a Piedmontese victory over an army composed of foreign volunteers defending the ...
, Italy, produces a range of wooden melodicas and accordinas that they market under the name ''Vibrandoneon''.
Suzuki Musical Instrument Corporation makes the Wood Melodion W-37 whose body is made of mahogany.
Alternative names
The melodica is known by various names, often at the whim of the manufacturer. ''Melodion'' (
Suzuki
is a Japan, Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Minami-ku, Hamamatsu, Japan. Suzuki manufactures automobiles, motorcycles, All-terrain vehicle, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), outboard motor, outboard marine engines, wheelchairs ...
), ''Triola'' (Seydel), ''Melodika'' (Apollo), ''Melodia'' (Diana), ''Pianica'' (
Yamaha), ''Melodihorn'' (
Samick), ''Melodyhorn'' (Angel), ''Diamonica'' (Bontempi), ''Pianetta'' (Guerrini), face piano, and ''Clavietta'' (Borel/Beuscher) are just some of the variants. When a recording technician unfamiliar with the melodica called it a "hooter", the band
The Hooters took that as their name.
Gallery
Melodica with tube.jpg, upPlayed horizontally, with two hands and an air tube
File:Melodica two-hand-playing by Pianonymous at Musical Instruments Fair Japan 2016.jpg, Played vertically, with two hands and an air tube
Melodica without tube.jpg, Melodica being played vertically, with one hand and without air tube
Suzuki Wood keyboard harmonica Melodion W-37.jpg, Wooden melodica; Suzuki Wood Melodion W-37
Hohner alto melodica.jpg, Hohner alto melodica
Accordina_drawing_from_US_Patent_2461806.png, Patent drawing for accordina
Аккордина.JPG, Accordina being played
Fagen of Steely Dan at Pori Jazz 2007 (cropped).jpg, Donald Fagen with a Yamaha Pianica in 2007
See also
*
Accordion
*
Claviola
*
Couesnophone
*
Harmonica
The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica in ...
*
Melodica in music
The melodica is an uncommon musical instrument in which the user blows air through a reeded keyboard. With its distinctive sound, the melodica has been used both for novelty purposes and as an instrument favored by certain performers.
Musician ...
*
Melodica Men
Melodica Men is a YouTube channel created by Joe Buono and Tristan Clarke, who perform an eclectic mix of music as melodica duets.
History
Their first viral hit was a performance of Igor Stravinsky's ''Rite of Spring'' in September 2016, gaini ...
*
Pump organ
References
External links
*
Melodicaworld
{{Authority control
Free reed aerophones
Keyboard instruments