The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art has an exhibit of homemade instruments and one of them was this 9-foot bass banjo. I have a big pile of old, busted drums and I think I now know how to make use of them.
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I just played this monster
- Thread starter bolophonic
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Imaging gigging that thing & the transportation you’d need.
Here are a few of our other threads about upright bass banjos, if you are really getting interested:
Abigail Washburn spotted with huge bass banjo!
Bass banjo build, much advice needed
Bela fleck and the flektones victor wootens bass
Abigail Washburn spotted with huge bass banjo!
Bass banjo build, much advice needed
Bela fleck and the flektones victor wootens bass
The strings were at least an inch off the neck. There were some instruments that the public were encouraged to try out, others were more “musical.”
If you look on the shelves there should be a number of triangular plywood uprights that actually play pretty decently. The deal with Schonbeck is that he felt anyone could be a musician, and anyone should be able to build a simple, usable, instrument out of household materials. I love that you are encouraged to play (most of) his work.
I think that's great. Everyone should be encouraged to learn to build things for themselves, and building a crazy musical instrument that you can play adds to the fun.
I came out of the section with the “public” instruments to find my mom playing some sort of massive harp in the actual exhibit space and she was mortified when I pointed out the sign that said “do not touch.”
I just finished building my studio space at home and I am super excited to start making some jalopy instruments along with all my other stuff.
Reminds me of the 4 string fretted washtub upright I cobbled together and gigged with for a couple of years.
- Apr 18, 2008
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Sweet!
Tomorrow I’m taking my homemade monster to its first gig.
Tomorrow I’m taking my homemade monster to its first gig.
Sweet!
Tomorrow I’m taking my homemade monster to its first gig.
Dude, I just fell out of my chair. Is there a thread for that beast??
Don’t let Gibson see that!Sweet!
Tomorrow I’m taking my homemade monster to its first gig.
- Apr 18, 2008
- 16,006
- 1
- 31,700
- Disclosures
- I'm highly opinionated and extremely self-assured
Nope, I didn't really do that kind of posting back then. It was a few years ago and I've since dismantled it. If you have any specific questions feel free to PM me.
The same thing happened when I went... my friend was touching one of the instruments outside of the room and a guard told her those were for display only. It was sort of a fine line between please touch and never touch in there!
The whole place was just such a mind-blowing experience. Absolutely one of my top favorite museums on the planet. I am pretty sure I only saw about 3/4 of the whole thing.
For the record, I came dangerously close to reaching out and playing this one:
